The Way That Young Lovers Do
by midlands-lass
Summary: Long forgotten faces and events haunt both Laura and Robbie in this tale of secrets that resurface from the depths of the past. This story takes place not long after Robbie and Laura return from New Zealand (assuming they go for 6 months). There will be romance, mystery, peril and a hot tub, all set in the stunning scenery of the North Yorkshire Coast.
1. Chapter 1 Making Plans

**AN: I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing it. As always, I don't own these characters, this is a purely for fun piece of fan-fuelled work. Thank you all for your messages of encouragement, your comments and messages mean a lot to me and help to keep me writing, so many thanks. Cheers ML.**

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It was a Sunday evening in mid-August. Already the nights were starting to draw in and, despite the warmth in the air, by nine o'clock in the evening it was dark outside. At their home in Oxford, Robbie Lewis and Laura Hobson were both relaxing on the sofa, Robbie seated at one end while Laura lay on his lap on a big comfy cushion while her legs stretched out lazily over the rest of the sofa. Robbie's hands rested lightly over her, happy just to have contact, occasionally caressing her arm or smoothing her hair as they chatted to each other.

Robbie had been telling Laura about a summer he'd spent with a friend, as teenagers, working in the amusement arcades and fairs along the north Yorkshire coast. He enjoyed telling the tales, watching her reactions and surprise as he painted her a picture of his past.

"And you never got your trousers back?" Laura asked through a laugh

"No" Robbie chuckled, watching her eyes shine with amusement at the story he'd just told her. "As far as I know they're still there"

She laughed again. "Robbie?! Is this one of your embellished tales?"

"No – it's the absolute truth!" he replied with an indignant laugh.

Laura shook her head, a grin still beaming on her face. Robbie would never lie, not even in this sort of situation but they both knew he was prone to embroidering his tales with a little more depth than was there in the original. He was a good storyteller and Laura loved to just simply be close to him, listen to him talk and hear his voice and the softness of his accent. Sometimes his stories involved characters from his past in Newcastle and she was always entranced by his renditions in a stronger Geordie accent. After a few drinks too many his own accent would strengthen too, and it always thrilled her.

As the sky outside darkened to a deep moonless black, Robbie told Laura about the places he knew up the North Yorkshire coast – Scarborough and its ancient castle, Robin Hood's Bay and the tiny cottages there, nestled on the edge of a long stretch of beach. He described Whitby, with its church and ruined abbey and beyond that, the vast purple expanses of lonely moorland. As he talked his hand went to her face and he caressed her cheek, his thumb gently playing across her high cheekbones. He loved to make her laugh with his stories. She was always a good listener, to whatever he was saying, but these days, more often than not, his talk was of good things; fun things from his past that seemed to enthrall her.

The pair of them could do this for hours, just talking about not particularly anything, or sometimes everything. It was effortless. There was so much to talk about, with ease between them both, still, after several years of being together. The luxury of being good friends before their physical relationship blossomed had afforded them a fast track to an intense and delicious intimacy both in mind and body. From the very start of their relationship they were able to snuggle on the sofa in a comfortable embrace that spoke of the years of friendship that had laid the groundwork. They were at once as comfortable as a cosy old favourite worn jumper but at the same time the thrill of newly acquired physical love was something wonderful and fresh, akin to a rainstorm after a hot day. This freshness was still there for them years after they had first got together.

Over the years, listening to the tales of his youth, Laura pieced together a picture of Robbie's earlier life, long before she came to know him in Oxford. Their lives as young people had been very different. There was an age gap, but it wasn't so much that which set things apart. While Robbie had been working at eighteen, Laura at that age had been travelling on the continent, establishing with ease her independence that was to help forge her career and her life. After that, she had gone to Oxford and there she had stayed. In that respect, Robbie had much more life experience than she did, despite all the travelling she'd done. As Robbie continued his stories, Laura watched him with affection as she listened to his tales of adventure. Robbie had never been to university, but his life experiences had made him brilliant at his job, just as much as she was with hers.

Laura knew too well that an Oxford education partly served to provide an elite separation between the "haves" and the "have nots". Forget just being brilliant at something, that was only part of it and that was just within the college society. It had always been thus. Right from the start she knew the stamp of Robbie's social status writ large across his character, for all to see. She had witnessed it the first time she had met him and Morse had lectured him on his use of _instant_ and _instantaneous_. Laura Hobson was the sort of person who could tailor herself to the situation, to the person, and either provide an empathetic ease or a powerful cut down as required. She had ridden roughshod over Morse for Robbie's benefit. As a woman in a male dominated realm she could tell that Robbie's social status and the sneers it sometimes received were not dissimilar to the traits of the sexism she experienced. Despite being at this raw end, it had not affected Robbie's integrity or turned him bitter. At work, all those years ago and since, he never treated her in any other way than as a professional, unlike many others. He never leered at her, or patronised her. He respected her professionally and treated her as an equal, working together to ultimately help others. This had been one of the things about him that had made her fall in love with him. She was proud that he was still a part of the force. The police needed kind and honest people like him to serve the public. But still, she worried deeply about him when he had to go out in the field, especially now he was a little older. He was fit and healthy, but anything could always happen. She pushed the thought from her mind as she always had to and pulled her thoughts back to the present. She felt Robbie's hand stroking her arm. He'd been telling her about the beach at Whitby. She looked up at him, he smiled down at her, he looked relaxed.

They had both spent the weekend off together. Despite the initial upset of Robbie returning to work _after_ retirement, Laura couldn't deny that he was much happier now he was able to continue working as a consultant. She was relieved, however that since returning from New Zealand he'd cut his contract down a bit more. It had been his choice and she hoped finally that it signaled a more relaxed approach to winding down his career. He'd said he wanted to work until he dropped dead but since their 6 months away, she'd noticed a change. She knew he still needed to work but he seemed more content in the time they had off together. She had cut her hours with the intention of early retirement and handing the baton to a new head of department. The weekend had been one that had been long awaited due to Laura's various shift patterns while she appointed new staff to her department. In addition, she had a 5-day conference coming up where she was giving several seminars. Robbie was pleased that she'd relaxed a little over the weekend, she'd been busy recently and had been working hard. After the lazy Sunday they'd just had however, she was looking rested.

"Anyway, you should get to bed, Love," He said, squeezing her arm gently. "You don't want to miss your train first thing. Are you all packed?" He got up off the sofa while she reluctantly sat up, running her hand through her hair.

She sighed. "Yes. Can't say I'm looking forward to it, these conferences can be exhausting in just their tediousness. 90% of the time they're downright dull. Ugh and for nearly a week, plus since they re-arranged it to August half of the delegates won't even come "

"Ah, you'll be back before you know it, and those that go will be the ones that actually want to be there, come on, chin up, off to bed" She smiled at his "glass half full" sentiment and he reached out his hand to hers and pulled her up off the sofa. She reeled herself into his arms. He responded with an embrace, taken by surprise, having expected her to head upstairs to bed.

"Robbie, take me to Yorkshire. To Scarborough, and Whitby and all the other places you've talked about" she was looking at him with bright searching eyes, it was a look he knew was only reserved for him and it was one he loved it for its candid simple honesty.

"What?" He frowned in surprise at her plea "Really?"

"Yes – when I get back, I'm owed a week off, the department's in good hands, it'll be a good test to see how they cope without me for 2 weeks especially at short notice. Plus it won't affect Jack's visit, we can spend a few days up there and be back in plenty of time for the bank holiday."

"What happened to a week in Venice?"

"Venice will stink in late summer, we'll go in the winter or spring" She'd obviously thought about it. She ran her hands up his back and hooked her hands around his neck. Robbie's hands went to her hips and he squeezed them gently as he spoke.

"Scarborough's a far cry from Venice you know, even on a hot August day. When that North Sea mist rolls in it can hang around for days"

"Well then we'll just sit in a shelter and eat chips and drink Yorkshire bitter or _"Newkie Brown"_ all day"

He smiled at the thought, then frowned slightly at her

"You really mean it?"

"Yes. I don't want to go anywhere else"

"Getting somewhere to stay might be a bit difficult, all the nice places are probably booked up by now"

"I don't care – we'll stay in a crappy B and B"

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with a good B and B"

"Well there you go then"

He looked at her. There was a girlish hope in her face as she looked back at him, smiling, with her eyebrows raised. She was more relaxed these days, about lots of things, he got less bollockings from her which was a sure sign she was mellowing as retirement crept ever nearer. Unlike his attitude to working for as long as possible, she couldn't wait to wind down her career, although professional pride and general fastidiousness meant that she wouldn't exit the department until she'd got it exactly how she wanted to leave it. He wondered if this was a safety net for herself – that maybe she still wanted to work like he did but needed an excuse to stay. Right now, however, he could tell she wanted this holiday, for whatever reason.

"Ok" he said with a chuckle, "I'll take you up the North Yorkshire Coast if that's what you want"

She laughed and hugged him tightly "Robbie Lewis, you filthy sod" she said, laughing at his initial confusion until he realised the double entendre.

He shook his head at her but gave her backside a playful squeeze. "You cheeky lass, you're the dirty one, it didn't even cross my mind!" he said and she laughed. He laughed back kissing her and chuckling at her amusement before she disappeared upstairs to get ready for bed.

With Laura at her conference, the following week was spent by Robbie trying to find places to stay on their holiday. He enjoyed planning the road route they would take, making sure he could show Laura all the places he wanted to on the way. First, they would go to Scarborough and spend a couple of nights there. Maybe he could get them a room at the Grand Hotel on the South Bay. If not, it would have to be a B 'n' B. If truth be told, part of him hoped it would be the latter. There was something nostalgic, not to mention romantic, about staying in a cramped room, sharing a small bed, all snug and close while outside the waves lapped over the sands. Weather Laura felt the same he wasn't sure. She wasn't a snob under any circumstance but she enjoyed nice things and comfort. As the days went by and his luck in finding a room at the Grand Hotel ran out, he convinced himself that _whatever would be would be_.

From her conference, Laura phoned Robbie briefly each day to ask on his progress. After making several phone calls and numerous enquires Robbie had failed to get a room at the Grand. He didn't tell Laura that the hotel was booked up but, in hope, persevered each day to see if there had been any cancellations. There weren't any. It would have to be a Bed and Breakfast.

Finally, Friday rolled round and by late afternoon Laura was on her way back to Oxford. She called Robbie from the train. As he saw her name on the caller display he suddenly felt excited about their trip, it was an odd boyish feeling, like he'd felt as a lad when school had finished for the summer. He smiled as he answered Laura's call.

"Hi, did you train leave on time? I'll pick you up"

"Yes, that would be great" she spoke quickly "listen I'm about to go into a tunnel, the line's going to cut out, but have you booked anything for Whitby yet?"

"Erm no, but I'm working on it" _Bugger_ he thought. He'd been concentrating so much on Scarborough he'd completely neglected his search for a place to stay in Whitby. Earlier in the week he'd found some possible places to stay, but they were B 'n' Bs again, and not of the more upmarket type that he wanted to treat Laura to. Even he drew the line at more than two nights in a cramped bed, if only for the benefit of his old back.

As her train pulled out of London, Laura frowned as the phone line jangled with interference. For a second it sounded like Robbie was underwater and briefly she felt an odd jolt of, not fear, but anxiety that he'd been cut off.

"Robbie? Are you still there?" She said, with a concern that oddly outweighed the situation.

"yes love, I'm here" The anxiety passed and she thought no more of it.

She spoke quickly again. "Well don't worry. I think I have something lined up for Whitby or nearby, leave it to me. Oh! here comes the tunnel, I'll see you later!"

And the line disintegrated leaving Robbie at the other end with a bemused but relived smile on his face. Fate _had _taken over. He'd not had any luck over finding something decent near Whitby so if Laura was in charge she couldn't rollock him for booking a humdinger, especially as the only place he'd been able to secure in Scarborough was a very modest B and B. He smiled. It looked like fate was back on his side. He had a feeling this was going to be a special holiday already.


	2. Chapter 2 When In Rome

**AN: Apologies to those of you who may have read the first draft of this chapter which contained lots of errors. I have fixed most of them I think. This was partly due to the perils of typing on an iphone and the over-helpful auto correct which likes to put similar looking but very different words to those I tapped out. That and just plain old klutzy writing on my part and work being stupid-busy. I hope you will forgive me for posting the first draft when I was very tired - a mistake I will not make again, even if it means not posting for another few days! Anyway, thanks for reading if you got this far and I hope this chapter is not too long winded. Next chapter will see the plot start to thicken a bit. Thanks for reading. ML**

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The Saturday dawned fresh and bright, the early morning was cool but the sun was already warming the places it touched and there was a tangy scent of late summer in the air. A heavy dew lay on the grass and the sky was already a stunning turquoise. It was going to be a lovely day.

Robbie and Laura rose early and by 7am Robbie had loaded the boot with their bags and they were on the road and heading northwards. As they departed the outskirts of Oxford Laura chatted about her conference, debriefing to Robbie about things like she often did. He enjoyed it and he knew it was good for her to get things out of her system. She liked to do it because she could be very unprofessional about some of her colleagues and peers and not worry about it getting back to them. It was almost like a confessional for her and she found it was a healthy and at times cathartic way to vent about sometimes trivial things. Robbie always listened to her and sometimes told her she was being too harsh on some people and quite often she made him laugh out loud at some of her comments and observations. As he drove, she chattered non-stop but by the time they reached the M1 she had finished debriefing and he was finally able to get a word in.

"So, tell me about this little place you've got lined up then." He asked her

"Ah yes, quite extraordinary luck. One of the delegates -when we all went for drinks - was telling me he had a cottage booked near Whitby but that he'd have to lose his deposit because his wife's mother was ill in hospital and that they couldn't go. So, I took the details and phoned the owner, explained the situation and booked us in instead. I gave him the deposit back. He's had it booked for months apparently, it's rather nice, set back from the road, small secluded garden and stunning views out to sea. Technically it's not Whitby, more Robin Hood's Bay but according to him we'll be able to get to both fairly comfortably."

Robbie raised his eyebrows in approval. It sounded like it would be the perfect notch up from what he had lined up. He loved Robin Hood's Bay and had been many times but had never stayed there. It seemed fitting that it would be a shared experience between him and Laura.

"Very nice!" He said as he overtook a lorry. "Sounds like it was meant to be eh?"

Laura smiled and looked at the road ahead. She was excited about their little holiday. She wasn't sure Robbie was totally convinced about how much she wanted to go up to Yorkshire with him. She wasn't too sure about why she had suddenly wanted to go herself, only that she got some sort of compulsion to see all the places he'd told her about. It had been a while since they'd had a holiday and although 6 months in NZ and south east Asia had been a long break away, she was ready for some down time after the recent hectic period she'd had at work. Were things meant to be? Laura kept an open mind about the notion of fate. As a scientist she could list all the quantum theories that related to what the idea of fate was, but it still didn't change the fact that for the most part some things were out of your own control. Some things _were_ open for manipulation, but on the whole, Laura felt it was better to just accept things as they were.

The roads were fairly clear and apart from some roadworks near Derby they made good progress. Stopping for a break on the M1 they had a coffee and an early lunch and by 11 they were well on their way again, passing Goole and the edge of the Humber estuary. The grassy verges of late summer wildflowers banked the roads and the sun shone down from a deep cloudless blue sky as they headed towards the coast.

The further north east they went, Laura noticed that the scenery changed from flat expanses into grassy gentle slopes and wooded hills amongst the farmland. It wasn't long before they reached the outskirts of Scarborough. Robbie wound down the windows of the car to let in the sea breeze.

"That'll blow away any cobwebs eh? Smells good doesn't it?"

"It does" Laura reached her hand over and squeezed Robbie's thigh as she looked out of the open window, a smile on her face. They drove through the suburbs of the town following signs to the seafront and it wasn't long before they had reached the road that would take them down to the South Bay. They drove slowly alongside the beach and promenade, stopping at times in the busy traffic while crowds wandered along the seafront pavements and across the road. The beach was crammed with people, densely so near to the promenade, but the tide was out so there was a sense of space even with the masses of holiday makers. The jumble of red brick houses tumbled down the steep hills that flanked the bay and pastel coloured old buildings mixed with the newer buildings that housed the amusement arcades. An array of shops selling beach toys, rock, ice cream and takeaways nestled beneath the steep hill that separated the main town and the beach.

Robbie looked at the seafront. It had been a while since he had been in the area. The last time had been with Val and the family before the kids had got too old for family seaside holidys. From what he could see, not much had changed apart from perhaps what the shops were selling. There was the odd nail bar and the signs above the shops were made of plastic instead of the traditional sign painted wooden ones that he remembered being much more attractive, but for the main part, Scarborough looked pretty much the same as it had always done.

Above them on the cliff hill at the North end of the bay, the ruins of Scarborough castle caught Laura's attention and Robbie smiled as she exclaimed its characterful and majestic presence over the bay. The garish seaside elements of the promenade were in odd juxtaposition with the sandy ancient ruins but somehow the two seemed to sit comfortably together. Laura was entranced by it. She loved history and Robbie smiled as she started to tell him about the probable catalogue of events that may have involved the castle based on what she already knew. He grinned as she enthused about it.

"It's wonderful!" She said

"It's like something out of that game of whatsits you like, y'know, the one with all the boobs and dragons" He said.

"Robbie!" Laura laughed and shook her head "So you _do_ watch it then? All those times you said you weren't really bothered with it and would rather read the sports supplements. I thought you said it was too fantastical for you?"

"Well, I couldn't help but notice a few things while you were watching it" he replied

Laura shook her head again, laughing at him. "So I'm guessing this is the South Bay?" she asked through her smile

"It is."

"And we're staying here?"

"Eh? No. Erm, No, we're not staying here. No."

"Oh?"

"I'm not slumming it in the South Bay with my special lass, oh no, we're going to a nice little B and B in the North Bay"

"I take it the grand was booked up then?" She said with a smirk

"Aye. Along with all the other nice gaffs. I'm sorry."

Laura laughed again. "I don't care" She said, and Robbie glanced at her briefly and saw the easy smile on her face and he felt elated. He loved it when he could see she was relaxing. She worked too hard sometimes and it was good to see her letting go after being so busy. It also meant she was less irritable. She hated not being in control of things, especially when she was supposed to be handing over the department when she finally retired. She was still worried a little about leaving the lab while things settled down but for now he could tell she had slipped into holiday mode.

They rounded the headland and as they skirted the imposing grassy base of the promontory the North Bay came into view. It was much more peaceful and relaxed with a big expansive grassy bank that separated the buildings from the seafront. The beach was wide and long and just a few holiday makers were strolling along the sands in stark contrast to the packed crowds in the South Bay.

They found the B and B and parked up outside. It was a typical place, nothing fancy, but it was clean and had an en-suite bathroom, a tv and pleasant sea views. Robbie was disappointed to find the room was a bit small, it had looked bigger in the photos he'd seen online. They dumped their bags on the floor and Laura made them a cup of tea using the tiny kettle from the tea tray provided in the room

Robbie sighed "Ah, it's a bit cramped, I'm sorry love, I thought it was going to be a bit bigger than this, I'm a bit annoyed the bed's a double, it was supposed to be a king size when I booked it"

"Well, we'll just have to sleep on top of each other then, won't we? She put her arms around him and leant up to kiss him. "And there's also a rather nice view"

He looked down at her "I've always got the best view" he said softly, and he raised his eyebrows and gave her a sweet smile.

"Robbie. . ." She said, looking back at him shaking her head, a slight blush colouring her cheeks.

He chuckled at her reaction and kissed her again, then hugged her close "So what do you fancy? Shall we go for a little mosey? Get something to eat?"

"Fish and chips?"

"Eventually"

"Why what else have you got in mind?"

"Ah, just a couple of north east seaside delights you need to try"

"I'm not entirely sure I like the sound of that"

He laughed and gave her a wink "When in Rome"

After unpacking their bags and settling into the room they headed out on foot and took the road into the town from the North Bay. The sun was hot for August and the sand on the roads and pavements along with the gentle salty breeze reminded them pleasantly and constantly that they were by the sea.

The seagulls coasted above their heads calling and wheeling in the fresh air as the pair of them meandered through the busy streets into the town centre before making their way to the town tram that would take them down the steep cliff face to the beach on the South Bay. As they walked Robbie pointed out various things to Laura that he'd told her about in his stories. At the top of the cliff, near to the tram, Robbie was glad to see that an Italian ice cream parlour that had been in the town for years and years was still on the go. He took Laura in and they had ice cream and coffee.

Afterwards they queued up and waited for the cliff tram to take them down to the beach. As they descended down the cliff face, Robbie told Laura that he used to run down the steps that ran by the side of the tram in an effort to race it much to the amusement of Val and the kids who watched him from inside the funicular as it whizzed them down to the seafront in a fraction of the time. Laura laughed as he shared the memory with her. She could imagine him doing it and that it would have caused much merriment from the passengers in the tram.

They walked along the seafront but avoided the beach as it was too busy, opting to take a stroll on the sands when it was quieter. The sun was still quite strong and the pavements were hot and sandy. Seagulls took chances with holidaymakers' chips and on the beach the donkeys were having a break from their plodding journeys up and down the sands and were being fed carrots and hay.

Robbie and Laura walked for a while along the sea front and then, to escape the crowds, Robbie took them to a pub on one of the back streets that had a beer garden with a sea view and found a couple of seats at a small table.

"What do you want?" Robbie asked before he went to the bar.

"Surprise me." Said Laura. Expecting him to get her the usual gin and tonic she was bemused to see him return with two pints of chestnut coloured ale.

"Here, try this, it goes with the salty breeze" Robbie said as he handed Laura the pint.

"It's a lovely colour"

"Aye it's good stuff" said Robbie with a nod. Laura took a sip. He was right. It was refreshing but had a caramel almost coffee like depth along with a hint of fruit that seemed to nod to the early autumnal air. Robbie put his pint down in the table and sat next to Laura on the little bench.

Their legs were pressed up against each other and Laura's hand went to Robbie's thigh under the table. As the ale hit her system, along with the fresh air she suddenly felt deliriously happy, like a young woman again, carefree and in love. The North Sea breeze was on her face and the sunshine and the taste of the ale took her to a place she'd long been away from, in her mind and heart and body. She looked up at Robbie he was looking at her with a soft affectionate smile on his face.

"So, you enjoying the delights of the North Yorkshire coast then?"

"Yes, yes I am" and she squeezed his leg again. His hand went under the table and he grasped her hand in his. He looked at her for a long time, smiling. She looked back at him, blushing slightly as she always did when he gave her one of his gazes that she knew only existed just for her.

"So, tell me about where it was you worked when you were - " she started to say but Robbie interrupted her

"Oh, hang on a minute there's something I need to just go and get. I'll be two ticks"

Laura raised her eyebrows in surprise as he got up and headed back into the pub. After a good 5 minutes he returned with two small white polystyrene tubs with chip forks sticking out.

"You can't have a pint of best ale without these. Laura looked into one of the pots. It was full of cockles, tender looking and fresh, their pastel colours of orange and white glistening like rock candy in the pure late summer sunshine.

"Robbie, no. Are you bloody kidding me? You don't even touch stuff like this with a barge pole!"

"No, I don't usually but I do when they're as fresh as these. The seafood stall's been in business 40 years - you can't keep going that long if your selling dodgy seafood. Go on, try one. They're vinegared"

"Er, hang on, you're not expecting me to eat one are you? And is being _vinegared_ supposed to seal the deal or something?!"

"You eat oysters"

"That's different"

"Why? These are just as good. Anyway, you ate some bloody dubious things when we were in Thailand"

"Well yes, but when in Rome"

"In that case, when in Scarborough. Go on, just try one. They go with the ale."

She scowled at him and he chuckled at her face

"go on" he said

"The things I do for you, Robbie Lewis."

She forked one of the cockles and popped it in her mouth. The texture and taste wasn't too bad, in fact, quite good but she wasn't going to admit that to Robbie. The cockles were tender and savoury and the vinegar did do a certain something to the whole experience. She took a sip of the bitter and had to admit to herself there was something not exactly good about it, but somehow, in the sunshine and with the seagulls crying above her head and Robbie smiling at her, something _right_ about them.

She gave him a look that was halfway between irritation and affection. Robbie laughed into his pint and took a long drink, his eyebrows raised mischievously at her as he did so. He had nearly drunk his ale and he went to get another pint for him and a half for Laura. When he got back to the table, he placed the glasses on the table. Before he sat back down he took something from his wallet and handed it to Laura.

"Here, take a look at this" He said. Laura took from him what at first looked like a small square card. It was creased and a bit tatty round the edges and she soon realised it was an old photo.

She studied it closely. It showed two bare chested young men, barely just men, standing side by side with their arms amiably around each other's shoulders and their other arms both making a strong man Popeye pose to show off their biceps. Laura saw straight away that one of the boys was Robbie. She laughed "Robbie it's you!"

He chuckled back as he watched Laura study the photo further.

"I dug it out before we left"

Laura was fascinated. She hadn't seen many photos of Robbie as a younger man or boy. The photo showed Robbie and the other boy standing on the beach with Scarborough castle in the background. It looked like a hot day in the photo and the two were posing a little, wearing only their swimming trunks.

"Look at you both in your speedos" she laughed. "And you're both so _white_!"

Robbie laughed. Behind them in the photo the beach was crowded, more people than sand showing.

"You should have seen us at the end of the day," He said, "we were like lobsters, it was one of the hottest days of the summer when that was taken."

Laura turned the photo over and saw Robbie had written the date and place and a small caption saying who was in the photo.

"So _this_ is Tommy? the friend in all your stories?"

"Aye"

Laura looked again at the other boy in the photo. He was taller than Robbie, with dark brown almost ginger coloured curly hair and green eyes.

"Look at the pair of you!" she laughed. "Very handsome." And she laughed again, delighted to see a picture from Robbie's past, especially one from an era he'd told her lots of stories about.

She studied the photo for a while. Tommy was indeed handsome. She could see why Robbie had mentioned that he got all the girls in a lather. He was well built with muscles that had come from working hard. Robbie had told Laura a few things about Tommy and that he had left school without O levels and worked on the bins while Robbie had done his A levels. She couldn't deny that Tommy was attractive but she also had a good look at the younger Robbie in the photo. He looked so young and carefree and as she looked at the grinning happy face in the picture she felt a pang of affection mixed with sorrow for him, knowing how his life would turn out, hishappiness that came with family life and then the long years of grief and sadness after he lost Val. She thought briefly about fate and how all events could possibly lead up to a continuous present moment. Old photos seemed to have that effect on her – the fact that they captured a moment in time. A single pure moment, unique and with no notion of past or future, just the crystallisation of that one point in time.

"Look at you, Robbie" She said, a fondness in her voice. "You've got long hair!"

Robbie laughed "I know, awful isn't it. I should burn that photo."

"I don't know, I think you look rather sexy. I wouldn't have kicked you out of bed, although Tommy does look quite a catch I have to say"

"Ah, there you go y'see, proof even now I couldn't compete with Tommy, he always got all the girls." Robbie lamented. Laura laughed softly, still studying the picture and squeezed Robbie's thigh again under the table.

"Was it just Tommy you spent time with here, that summer?"

"Yeah, just the pair of us. We were thick as thieves" he laughed "in both senses of thick"

Laura laughed back with him.

"Maybe you could look him up? He's in Newcastle isn't he?"

"Tommy? No, Tommy died."

"Oh god I'm sorry, Robbie. I didn't realise. I know you've mentioned lots of old friends. I just presumed he was still around, I thought you'd talked about a Tommy from Newcastle."

"Ah, no, that was Tommy Evans. He is still around although I've not seen him for a long time. No, the Tommy from my youth is long gone." He sighed and a frown settled over his brow. "After that summer down here we both grew up I suppose. I joined the police and he joined the navy, not long after we got back home. I didn't get to see him again."

"And he died?" Laura spoke quietly, she could see a sadness in Robbie's face.

"Aye. He joined the navy and was on shore leave in Singapore. Drowned off the end of a pier. Drunk as a skunk apparently." He laughed sardonically "That was Tommy."

"That's awful, Robbie"

"I know. Such a waste of a life. He was a good friend, despite being a bit of a lad at times." He took a drink from his pint and looked out to the North Sea, watching the foamy white horses far out on the horizon. "I never got to say goodbye. Well, I never went to the funeral I mean, his body was repatriated but I wasn't able to go by the time I'd found out about it" He sighed "I don't particularly like funerals, who does, but it is a way to say goodbye"

Laura took his hand "Well we can have a drink to him here? Say goodbye"

"Y'know, you're right. We can. Think of the good times, there were lots of them."

Laura laughed "I've heard plenty but I bet there's more?"

Robbie laughed back "Oh yes, there's plenty more I've not told you" He chuckled, taking another sip of his pint.

"It was ironic, how he died, y'know, falling off that wharf all that way away. He was always jumping off stuff, diving or tombstoning as they call it now. He did it all the time here and in Whitby. We used to get into trouble with the coastguard, jumping off in the hot weather. All the lasses used to love it, well at least we thought they did"

"You did it too?"

"A couple of times but it was too much of a risk for me, I'm not a big risk taker, you know that" and he winked at her. Robbie looked out to sea and took another drink of his pint.

He sighed. "Aye, he seemed to have a knack of judging the depth of the water, he never came to any harm. There were a few close calls though" He laughed "They really got the girls talking."

Laura laughed again. She loved to see him talk about old times, and he loved to tell her stories. This was the first time she'd seen him sad at the memories he'd conjured up however, and Laura squeezed his hand again, bringing him back to the present.

He sighed. "Tommy liked his adrenaline that's for sure. He was a bit of a ladies man too. While we were here he shacked up with a local lass for a few days, I had to cover for him at the amusement hall."

"What about you? Did you _shack up with a lass_?"

Robbie laughed, shaking his head "No. There was one I liked but she wasn't interested."

"Well more fool her." And she smiled at him, and gave him one of her looks. "And let's drink to Tommy"

"Aye, to Tommy" And they clinked glasses and drank, both looking out to the horizon.

With the cockles and the ale finished and the sun starting to lose its height Robbie and Laura made their way back down to the seafront and had a walk along the beach. They took their shoes and socks off and as the tide came in they walked along the water's edge. Parallel to them the road was still busy and the lights of the amusement arcades started to glow and shine brightly as the sun dipped away and the evening started to advance. There were still plenty of people on the beach and the air was noisy with traffic and holidaymakers but at the water's edge it seemed peaceful to Robbie.

With his hand in Laura's Robbie soaked up the seaside atmosphere as they walked, he sneaked a few looks at her, something he liked to do when they were together in public. Sometimes he felt his heart fill with love for her just knowing she was physically by his side. He knew he didn't tell her enough how much he loved her. It was hard to do so sometimes, and he didn't know why. As they wandered, Robbie watched as the last few rays of the late August sunshine played on Laura's face and illuminated her hair at the edges. He knew he'd hurt her before they went to New Zealand but she'd forgiven him even before he saw sense. He knew then how much she loved him. He also knew he'd almost lost her. He looked at her now and took in a deep breath of relief at the way things had turned out, that he'd seen sense, with no small amount of help from Hathaway. Laura turned to look at him. She smiled.

"What?" She said, catching the look on his face and knowing it was one of his deep in thought looks.

"Nothing" he said "just that it's nice being here in Scarborough with you"

Laura looked up at him, squeezing his hands in hers. She smiled back at him, her eyes sparkling in that way that he loved.

"This place" He said looking round "it's special. It's good to have you here with me. And I only bring special lasses here y'know" He said with his eyebrows raised and a smile.

"I bet you say that to all the girls" said Laura, but she knew there had only ever been two special women in Robbie's life. Val and her. She squeezed his hands again, looking back at him for a few moments with a tenderness that made his heart swell.

Still gazing at him she pulled him closer. "I hate to remind you, Robbie, but it was my idea to come here, not yours" and she smirked at him. He rolled his eyes at her, half smiling but shaking his head with exasperation at her.

"Right, Hobson," he said "just for that cheek, _you_ can buy the fish and chips"

She laughed back at him and squeezed his hands again. "I was going to anyway. Come on. Take me to the best chippy in Scarborough."

They trudged their way along the dry sands and up to the road that ran along the beach, putting their shoes back on before walking along to the pelican crossing. Robbie scanned the shop fronts, screwing up his eyes in contemplation.

"It's been a while" He said "but that place there was always good, better than the one over the road, if I remember" he nodded his head in the direction of a fish and chip shop.

"We could eat in or get a bench, what do you fancy?"

"Oh bench, Robbie, always!"

As he was looking at the row of shops, Laura's phone rang. "Robbie I need to get this, sorry, it's the lab." and sitting down on a nearby bench she took the call.

"No problem, I'll go and get the fish and chips" Said Robbie as she started to speak into the phone. It didn't look serious. She'd told work to call her if needed and he knew that although she was trying to take a break from the lab she would rather avert a crisis by taking a quick call than have to return to chaos when she went back after the holiday.

Robbie crossed the road and went into the fish and chip shop. He struck it lucky, there was only one other person waiting. The woman behind the fryer told him there would be a short wait for freshly cooked fish and chips. While he waited, Robbie went to the doorway and looked out. The road was busy with traffic but the holidaymakers and beach goers were starting to dwindle as the sun began to disappear.

Robbie watched a young family cross the road and he smiled as he watched the kids happily struggle with buckets and spades and inflatable sea creatures. Behind the family a bunch of youngsters dressed to impress each other were taking selfies and giggling and flirting. Robbie watched them for a while, taking in the ambience of the seaside atmosphere. After a while, he noticed a woman wandering about on the sandy pavement. She was different to all the other people in the crowds. Robbie soon saw she was begging. She was unkempt and her clothes were worn and dirty. There was a look of malnourishment around her face and a haggard but alert pose that only came from years of living on the streets and constantly anticipating threat and harm from the process. Robbie watched as the woman approached several holiday makers and asked for money. They were indifferent to her, ignoring her mainly, some of them sneering at her. No one gave her anything and she continued to wander along the pavement. Robbie continued to watch her for a while. He couldn't ever understand how people could be left to fend for themselves if they were in need, regardless of how they'd got there, through fault of or through no fault of their own, it just didn't seem right. The woman approached a few more people and then stood at the curbside, looking up to the oncoming traffic. A few seconds later, Robbie observed a big flashy car with blacked out windows pull up beside her and she got in the front passenger seat. Robbie was immediately on alert. There was something suspicious about the proceedings. Something didn't feel right. His innate detective side kicked in and although he didn't see the make or model of the car, he automatically took note of the number plate.

The car drove off with the woman and Robbie watched as it followed the road up to the headland and onto the North Bay.

"Do you want salt and vinegar love?" Robbie's concentration in his observations was interrupted and he suddenly remembered what he was doing. The fish and chips were ready. The woman behind the counter was piling them into paper.

"What? Oh, Sorry, yes on both please" Robbie went up to the counter

"There you go love, ta"

"Cheers, they look good, thanks."

Outside Laura was waiting for Robbie. With her call from the lab finished fairly quickly she'd wandered along the shop side of the bay and browsed the shops. They were mainly beach paraphernalia and rock emporiums but she stopped at a gift shop to look at the post cards. She found one that caught her eye and bought it before wandering up to the fish and chip shop where Robbie was paying the woman behind the counter.

"Good timing" he said, "everything ok?"

"Yes, in the end" said Laura, rolling her eyes

"What's that?" Robbie pointed to the small paper bag as they both walked to find a bench to eat their dinner.

"It's a saucy seaside postcard. I'm going to send it to Jean innocent. I think she'll appreciate it."

She showed it Robbie. There was a cartoon of an old tramp and a busty policewoman. The policewoman wore a short skirt and revealing uniform and she held a notebook and pencil. the policewoman was saying to the old tramp "_anything you say will be taken down_" to which the old tramp replied _"knickers!"_ Robbie chuckled.

"It's very wrong on so many levels" said Laura laughing at Robbie's reaction.

"I'm sure she'll appreciate it as you say, especially from you" He said. Laura and Jean Innocent hadn't always seen eye to eye but they had a mutual respect and understanding that as women they had faced more adversity than their male counterparts, sometimes _because_ of those counterparts. Robbie knew only too well how much of Laura's job was fielding sexism. Not so much now but early on in her career, even in the '90's when things had supposedly started to improve for women in a male dominated career field.

The fish and chips were delicious and Laura found herself eating more than usual as they were so good. After they had eaten them, they walked again slowly up the road towards the North Bay.

"I'm bushed and now very stuffed" she said. "You must be tired too, all that driving?" She said to Robbie

"Yeah, I am a bit. Don't think I'll be hitting the discos that's for sure"

Laura smirked to herself as she always did when Robbie used an outdated term. She was glad to know they would just head back to the BnB and relax and do not much. She had a couple of books to read and she knew Robbie would probably want to watch _Match Of The Day_ later on and she couldn't think of a better end to the day than to snuggle up with him on the bed while she read her book and he pretended not to fall asleep to the tv.

They continued to walk at a leisurely pace back to the B and B. When they got back to the room they both flopped on the bed. They were quiet for a while, both more tired than they cared to admit. The fresh air and travelling and mid-day drinking had made them tired but it was a good fatigue and they were both feeling relaxed and contented.

"So, what what's been your favourite thing so far about Scarborough?" Robbie asked Laura. She was snuggled up to his side with her head on his shoulder.

"Well, I love the castle, I can't wait to go up there tomorrow. The Italian ice creams were also very good. But I think my favourite thing so far was the ale and the cockles" She raised an eyebrow, waiting for Robbie's reaction.

"You're pulling my leg, surely?"

"No, I loved them"

"Listen, Hobson, I know a wind up when I hear one"

"It's the truth. You've converted me. It's best Yorkshire ale and North Sea cockles with vinegar all the way from here"

Robbie laughed, shaking his head. "I still don't believe you!"

Laura laughed again and propping herself up kissed him. Lightly and sweetly at first and then with a little more urgency, her hand coming to rest gently on his chest.

"Mmm" said Robbie. "You're all salty from the chips"

"You too" she replied, between kisses "And, talking of cockles..."

Her hand went down Robbie's chest and beyond and they smiled at each other, both eventually breaking into soft laughter as her hands explored further.

"Oooff" Said Robbie through his laughter as Laura's hands, pincer like but gentle, explored "You can warm mine anytime, but I still think you're pulling my leg" Outside the night was settling in, stars were appearing in the dark theatre of the night sky and the sea washed calm waves over the soft sands of the North Bay.

"I'll be pulling something else in a minute" Said Laura, looking at him pointedly

Robbie gasped slightly "You saucy thing, you're, ooh. . . you're. . . ah. . . you're like one of those rude postcards..."

Laura laughed and with her hands still on a mission, she leant up to kiss him again.


	3. Chapter 3 Fortunes Told Here

The following morning, Robbie slowly awoke to the sound of seagulls and an empty space next to him in the bed. The light flooded in through the thin curtains of the B and B and as he pulled round he remembered he was in Scarborough. He rubbed his hand over his face and yawned, closing his eyes against the bright morning light. When he opened them again, Laura was next to the bed, putting on a grey running top.

"What time is it?" he asked, his voice croaky with sleep.

"7.15"

"Bloody hell, woman, what are you doing up? we're supposed to be on holiday"

"Exactly. How often do I get a beach and a seafront to run along?" She zipped up her jogging top with a bright smile and a smug look on her face.

"Why don't you join me?" She said with a cheeky grin

"Erm, no. I'll give that a miss, thanks all the same" Robbie said now with a little bit of irritation in his croaky sleep filled voice.

Laura laughed. "You don't fancy it?"

"No I do not. You mad woman. I might go for a swim at some point though"

"I'll believe it when I see it"

"Yeah, well it's not like Thailand I grant you." He yawned again "That North Sea's cold even after it's had time to warm up over the summer" he reflected, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"I won't be long, then I'll have a quick shower and we'll go for breakfast" She announced as Robbie watched her buzz around the room with far too much energy than was necessary for an early Sunday morning. He would have liked to have had a bit of a lie in and maybe a bit of a cuddle but she obviously had other plans.

"Yes M'am" he said with his eyebrows raised sleepily. It was too early to argue with her.

"Hey, pass us the iPad on your way out, I need to look something up" he said as she made an adjustment to the laces on her running shoes.

Laura gave him the ipad, kissed him and then disappeared out of the door.

Robbie yawned again and closed his eyes for a few minutes. Despite the rude awakening, he'd slept well. The day outside, from what he could see, looked like it might be another scorcher. Opening his eyes again he picked up Laura's ipad. He smiled at the lock screen. Laura had clearly been on an image search and found a picture of an old antiquarian print or engraving of Scarborough castle. She was obviously enchanted with the place. He made a mental note that an old framed print would make a nice stocking filler for her at Christmas.

He opened the web browser and typed into the search box. After looking at the results and following a few links he put it down again, satisfied with what he'd found out. He yawned again and stretched then got up and went to the window. Scratching the back of his head he opened the window to let in the morning air which was fresh and full of the scent of the sea.

Looking out, Robbie could just make out Laura, a figure in grey jogging attire, running along the sands. He smiled and watched her run for a while. _You_ _sweet lass_ he thought. He watched her for a minute or two and then saw her come to a stop and do some stretching as she faced the sea. He looked out to the horizon that she was looking at; the sky was a soft blue as it met the darker pea green of the north sea and benign but playful white horses textured the expanse of water as it faded off into the distance.

To the South, Robbie saw Scarborough castle, hazy in an early autumnal mist. He yawned again and then looked down onto the road in front of the B and B. He watched as a few dog walkers strolled along the quiet promenade along with some early hikers off on a long walk, overtaken by the occasional cyclist. After a while another figure caught his eye.

Squinting against the low morning sun, he saw it was the homeless woman from the night before. She was walking quickly, almost maniacally. Robbie suspected she was on some sort of stimulant or drug. He frowned. What was it about her? He felt there was a reason that he had noticed her in the first place and now had seen her again. There was _something_ going on, he could just feel it. He put it down to just being a copper - after all, he thought to himself - he was trained to sniff out trouble. He continued to watch the woman as she marched out of view, heading in the direction of the town. Then he went for a shower and a shave.

Later that day Robbie and Laura took a picnic up to the castle. Laura found a small bakery and cake shop and bought sandwiches and treats and back at the B and B she made a flask of tea for them. They walked leisurely up to the foot of the promontory and then climbed up the steep path to reach the castle ruins. Robbie bought a guidebook and they had a long look round the ancient remains. Laura gave Robbie a potted history of the castle and he enjoyed listening to her bring the ruins to life. She explained things to him in a way that related them to things he knew and to current events and he realised what he had always known, that she was a good teacher as well as a brilliant pathologist. He knew why she had been so sought after to lecture at the conference she had just been on. Despite winding down her career into retirement he knew she was planning to do more lecturing while she let go of the reins of the lab and he was proud of her and the knowledge she would pass on to others.

After a while he realised he'd just been gazing at her while she'd been talking and he caught himself smiling at the fact.

"So that's quite amazing don't you think?" She said to him, her eyebrows raised with enthusiasm at what she'd just been talking about.

"Oh, yes, it is" he said not knowing what he was agreeing about. "It is indeed!" He said and wrapped his arms around her. They were seated on a blanket on the castle fields. A soft breeze played across the long meadow grasses and tousled Laura's hair across his face and the sun shone down on them. He hugged her close and kissed her cheek, his lips lingering on her skin, enjoying the contact of being close to her in the fresh air.

She smiled. It always felt good in Robbie's embrace. Allowing herself to acknowledge the feelings of loneliness she'd once had and all vulnerabilities she'd fought hard to keep under guard was something she had learned to accept since being with him. It was an odd thing. At once she was glad of having him in her life but it had also shown up what she felt were her own shortcomings. She had always thought of herself as fiercely independent, not needing a man or anyone else for that matter to complete herself. She was her own person and had a set of good close friends. But when it came to being one half of a partnership she had, in the past, struggled. She could never seem to give herself up to another person and still retain her sense of self, until Robbie. Robbie was the opposite. For most of his adult life he'd been part of a family unit and thrived on it. When he'd told her he wasn't going to go to New Zealand the construct in her head had crumbled, rocked to the foundation. In an instant she'd felt that she wasn't enough for him. He'd wanted to work more than be with her. Inside she'd collapsed but she still couldn't be angry with him. At the time, when she was in the lab before taking her leave, she'd not even been sure that she would return back from New Zealand. If it was more important to Robbie to be at work more than it was to be with her then maybe this was the end for them. She'd not wanted that but she knew she couldn't go on with half measures.

She took a deep breath, relieved at how things had turned out. She looked at the castle, so old, so much history behind it yet so much of it still standing. Up on the hilltop it was almost easy to feel that nothing else existed, just the pair of them in the sunshine and the fresh air.

"This is nice, Robbie" she said, wrapping her arms over his and pulling herself closer to him

"It is. Are you having a good time?" He nuzzled his face into her hair

"I am"

"Good. Me too. I don't know how long I can sit here though. My arse is going a bit numb"

"Robbie! How to kill a nice moment, for heaven's sake!" she scolded but she laughed and he chuckled back. He loved to wind her up and she took the bait each time.

"Actually, so is mine" she said, with another chuckle.

"We'll have another stroll in a bit, that'll loosen things up a bit." Robbie said "Those sandwiches were good, should keep us going for a while"

"What shall we do for dinner tonight?" Laura asked, turning to look at him "As much as I love them, and despite how wonderfully fresh they are here, we can't have fish and chips _every_ night."

"No, well I've thought about that." Said Robbie. "You know the ice cream parlour from yesterday? Well they also run a nice little Italian restaurant, it's been on the go since I can remember. I checked on the internet and it's still there so I thought we could try that if you like?"

"And you said Scarborough is a far cry from Venice. Sounds great."

That afternoon they walked and then relaxed on the sands on the North Bay before heading back to the town for a drink and then dinner at the Italian restaurant Robbie had told Laura about. Robbie was pleased to see the restaurant hadn't changed much. It could have done with a bit of a makeover but there was something homely and nostalgic about it that he liked.

The meal was good. Fresh and well cooked, pasta and in-house stone baked pizza and garlic breads with fresh olives. They polished off a good Chianti and Robbie had a tiramisu of which Laura stole several spoonfuls of.

After coffee Robbie paid the bill then waited outside for Laura while she went to the toilet.

The night was cool but not cold, he breathed in the air, it was refreshing and tangy with the sea but tainted with a hint of traffic fumes. He glanced up the road. The street was a little run down. Like many towns, Scarborough had fallen on hard times. There were a lot of charity shops and several boarded-up shop windows that looked like they had been long established businesses that had closed down. Robbie wandered down the road a little while he waited for Laura. In the doorway of one of the shops he saw a pair of legs sticking out covered with a filthy blanket and some flattened cardboard. He wandered up to the doorway and in the streetlight he squinted. He realised it was the homeless woman he'd seen that morning and the day before.

In the glow of the streetlight he saw she had a black eye that certainly hadn't been there the day before, when he'd seen her get into the flashy car.

"Spare any change?" The woman spoke gruffly as she looked up at him, the whites of her eyes almost glowing in the dankness of the darkened doorway. In the gloom, the bruising round her eye looked inky black and fresh.

Robbie smiled and reached into his pocket for his wallet. Without really thinking, he took a note out and gave it to her. He felt sorry for her. He'd seen too many victims of bad circumstance in his work and he knew however the woman had come to live on the streets, it wasn't by choice.

Wide eyed, the woman took the note, almost snatching it from him and quickly tucked it away into her clothes. She frowned at him, guarded and suspicious.

"Are you after a shag or summat? 'cause I'm not on the game you know" She said with a touch of aggression that was borne from defence.

Robbie smiled at her. "No, no I'm not. I just know it's not much fun sleeping rough. I've only done it twice, once down south and once here on the beach."

The woman looked back at him, her expression softened slightly but she still regarded him with suspicion. She wasn't used to people talking kindly to her. Robbie crouched down so he was at more of an eye level with her.

"What happened to your eye?" He asked her

"I walked into a wall" she replied with a bitter sarcastic tone. Robbie smiled sympathetically at her.

"There must be a better place you can go isn't there?" He said, "A hostel or a refuge?"

The woman looked at him, directly in the eye, still with suspicion but she sensed the benevolence in Robbie's voice and her guard dropped a little.

"The hostel is full of arseholes wanting to feel me up and the woman's place has banned me f' being rowdy" She said.

Robbie smiled sadly at the girl. He expected it was more to do with drugs than noise. He'd given her a £20 note. If she went on to spend it on drugs that was up to her. Part of him couldn't blame her, living the life she did on the streets - why wouldn't she find something to ease the pain? He hoped she might use it to get somewhere safe for the night however.

Up the road, Robbie saw Laura come out of the restaurant and look for him.

"Well, I hope you find somewhere comfortable. Take care" He said to the woman and he stood up.

"Tha's got a kind face" the woman said. Robbie smiled back at her. People often said this to him and although he didn't see it himself, he liked to hear it. The night wasn't that cold, but somewhere deep inside Robbie felt an odd chill pass over him. It was only brief, but it made him shiver slightly.

The woman watched Robbie as he walked away. She took out the £20 note and frowning, held it tight.

"What were you doing?" Laura asked Robbie with a curious smile as he walked back towards her. Robbie told her about the woman and Laura took his arm as they headed to the steps that would take them down to the seafront and the North Bay. Laura listened as Robbie told her he'd given the woman some money. Laura smiled and she felt the familiar swell of love for Robbie and his inherent kindness that was always there for people in need. She knew he would have given the woman a few pound coins at least but even Robbie was surprised at the amount he'd given to the woman. He wasn't sure what had made him do it, only that he felt sorry for her and, after seeing her three times in the short time they'd been in Scarborough, he'd concluded that there was something else going on with her. Although it was none of his concern, he had a feeling it wasn't good.

Down on the seafront Robbie and Laura found a bench and sat for a while in silence. The night had fallen quickly. Out to sea it was black and almost fathomlessly dark, as if the dark sky and sea went on forever into nothingness. They both looked out into the darkness. Behind them the bright lights of the amusements flickered and flashed. Ahead of them, the stars, although beginning to be numerous, were like feeble tin foil dressings in a stage set in comparison to the depth of the night sky over the sea which, for a few moments, to Robbie seemed like an abyss into the universe and lost time.

Robbie realised he'd drifted off again, contemplating the darkness, and it was Laura's voice, soft and relaxed, that brought him back to the present.

"I love those little painted huts. The gypsy one, look, the colours are amazing. Robbie?"

He looked to where she was gesturing to. There was a small gypsy caravan, beautifully painted but obviously a gimmick, there only for the purpose of making money from the tourists and holidaymakers. A large ornate sign read _fortunes told here_.

"Yeah, I suppose so" He said with a frown

"Not a fan of _Gypsy Lee so-and-so_ or whatever her name is?"

"No. Not really."

"Why's that then?" Laura asked him with an amused quizzical look.

"Ah, I dunno. They prey on people." He frowned. "There was one knocking about when me and Tommy were here, that last summer before he joined the navy." He looked out to the blackness over the bay, his face troubled. Laura saw his mood had changed suddenly at the talk of the gypsy caravan.

"She asked us both for money for some lucky white heather." He continued. He sighed at the recollection and looked out to the vast darkness over the bay as if searching for an answer to an unknown question.

"Tommy wouldn't give her any." He paused, as if recalling the memory in detail. "Anyway, she still told us our fortunes." He continued. "I remember. . . she looked at Tommy for a long time, then she told him to stay away from the water. She wouldn't say anything else about it, just to stay away from water. Then she said Tommy would always be here in Scarborough and never leave." He shook his head. "Talk about a riddle. Tommy told her to eff off." Robbie laughed sadly at the memory and sighed.

"I bet you didn't tell the gypsy to _eff off_ like Tommy did?" Laura said.

His frown abated a little. He looked at her with a slight smile.

"No, no I didn't" he said. Laura was right, he hadn't told the gypsy to get lost. That had never been his nature and he loved how Laura knew that, and he felt humbled that she always saw that side of him.

Laura looked at Robbie. A sad frown still cast a shadow over his face. "Did she tell you your fortune?" She asked him softly.

"Yes. All nonsense of course" He shook his head, his frown was now laced with anger. "I believed her, for a while. I mean, I know it's all cold reading, but when Tommy died by drowning, well, I thought, maybe she _had_ known our futures. The thing is, she was a proper gypsy, or wise woman as my old gran would have said. She wasn't one of those flyby nights" he nodded his head towards the painted wheeled hut that Laura had admired. "According to the locals she used to roam about all around here, on the moors, up the coast, selling heather and lace and stuff, begging I suppose. So, I believed her for a while. After Tommy died, it all seemed like it was coming true." He sighed again, and a sadness set his face that alarmed Laura a little when she saw it.

He continued "Anyway, then things happened, and of course I knew it was all nonsense, she was just preying on us, trying to frighten us" Laura wondered if by _things happened_ Robbie was referring to Val's death.

"What did the gypsy tell you? About your future?" Laura asked

"Ah, I dunno, some guff. I can't remember now" But he could. He remembered the gypsy's words as if they had only just been spoken. He just didn't want to tell Laura.

"Anyway" He continued with another sigh "I'm not a fan of fortune tellers or clairvoyants or mediums or whatever it is they call themselves now."

Laura smiled at him and took his hand, sensing that the conversation about gypsies and fortune would be better left alone.

"Come on" She said brightly. "let's head back to the B and B. You need to fall asleep to _Match Of The Day_ and I've got my book to read"

"You make it sound so romantic" Robbie said with a wry laugh

"That's because it _is_" She said and gave his hand a squeeze, smiling as she looked at him her eyes shining in the darkness "It's also getting chilly. I bet you'll need your cockles warming again"

"Laura Hobson" he said in a low voice "you shouldn't say things like that to me in public"

"I'll say what I like" she said with a smirk and tilted her face up to him, her lips close to his and in the late August darkness she kissed him, softly and sweetly at first and then, not really caring that they were out in public, she kissed him again with a fervour that he returned in equal measure that made his heart thump and left them both a little breathless.

Behind them on the seafront road the traffic was beginning to quell and the lights of the arcades flashed and shone in the darkness, making the blackness out to sea seem even deeper. Not far from where they sat, a car drew up on the road. It was the same car that Robbie had seen the day before. Unbeknownst to him and Laura, the electric window of the vehicle silently slid down and the driver looked out at the couple as they kissed and chatted. The occupant of the big expensive car watched them for a while before the window silently returned to its original closed position and the car drove stealthily away before turning up the hill towards the town.

Oblivious to the car and the driver, Robbie and Laura sat for a while longer and then, hand in hand, they headed back to the B and B.

That night Robbie fell asleep easily but his rest was plagued by bad dreams. He saw Tommy, drowning, under water in a foreign sea. In his nightmare Robbie was underwater too, trying to get to him, feeling his own lungs fill with the saltwater and never getting to Tommy. No matter how hard he tried to swim towards him, Tommy was pulled away from him at an equal pace. He saw the gypsy above them, looking down at them both through the murky salty water. She was repeating her prophecy to Tommy, pointing at him as he struggled, seaweed tangling around him, while all the time Robbie tried desperately to save him. All through the night Robbie had tossed and turned, waking Laura at one point. She'd smoothed his hair and in his sleep he calmed a little, she went back to sleep but Robbie's nightmares continued until the early hours when the first misty light of dawn woke him up. It was a relief to be awake and despite feeling tired he stayed awake until dawn turned into daybreak. He thought of his dreams and nightmares of Tommy's death and he felt troubled for a while until Laura woke up and then, with her arms around him, wrapped in her familiar morning embrace, he found himself dropping back to sleep, this time deep and dreamless.

* * *

**AN:**

**Thanks to BaronToveyre for the info about Gypsy huts in Scarborough :)**


	4. Chapter 4 The Changing View

As Monday morning brightened into another flawless late summer day, Robbie awoke for a second time, Laura gently squeezing his shoulder.

"Hello sleepyhead" She said with a smile and a soft quiet voice "Time to get up, we'll miss breakfast if we're not careful"

Robbie yawned and rubbed his eyes. Laura kissed his cheek. "Are you ok? You were tossing and turning all night"

Robbie screwed his eyes up

"Yeah, I think I had too much garlic bread last night" he said through another yawn.

Laura laughed softly and kissed him again "Well, don't go back to sleep, we don't want to miss the rubber eggs and scalding hot coffee at breakfast"

Robbie frowned and rubbed his hand over his face "Ah, it's not that bad here is it?" he said

"No, but I'll be glad to get to the cottage today" She got up and went into the bathroom. As she continued to talk about their plans for the day, Robbie's bad dreams began to fade from his mind and by the time they had eaten breakfast and packed their bags he had almost forgotten about them.

Soon they were on the road again. Robbie drove them out of Scarborough and onwards towards Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay.

On the way they stopped at Pickering. It was a little market town that Robbie and the family had always visited when they had been in the area. Laura loved it instantly, as he knew she would, as it was full of charm and loaded with history. They had lunch in a tearoom and then were back on the road again heading towards the coast and the cottage at Robin Hood's Bay.

As they drove along the moorland road the sun shone down from a flawless blue sky. The air was warm but with a slight hint of September crispness from the breeze that came from the North Sea. The heather on the moors was at its best. Bright purples and pinks and rich browns of the moorland and greens of bracken and fields together formed a patchwork of rich colour that stretched as far as the eye could see.

"We're not too far from Whitby now" said Robbie as the car headed up the steep hill flanked either side with the heather. "We'll just stop for a few minutes for a breath of fresh air" and he winked at her as he slowed the car down and pulled into a small car park off the main moorland road. Laura smiled. She loved it when Robbie surprised her like this. It was never for anything big or grand but it was always for something that to him was important even though to someone else it might be seen as trivial.

"What have you got lined up?" She asked him.

"Quite literally, a surprise" said Robbie as he pulled on the hand break and turned off the car's engine. "Well, not really, it's just a nice view that you can't quite see from here"

Laura chuckled and shook her head.

"Everywhere's a nice view round here, Robbie, you can't go wrong" she said.

Robbie raised his eyebrows in agreement and they both got out of the car and into the sunshine.

Taking her hand Robbie led Laura along the grass verge of the road until they reached a sandy path that stretched off into the distance over the vast expanse of open moorland. Ahead of them the path was scattered with walkers, it was obviously a popular route onto the moors. A big party of hikers all kitted out in walking gear overtook them and then they were alone together on the air washed moor. It was suddenly quiet and apart from the distant sound of the occasional car that whooshed by on the road behind them there was just the sound of the moorland breeze and soft tread of their footsteps on the sandy path.

They walked in comfortable silence for a while, hand in hand. Above them the swallows were gathering and chattering excitedly, swooping low for insects before racing back up into the warm air above the moor. High in the sky a large bird was circling, its flight effortless on strong wings. Its mewling cry caught Laura's attention.

"Look Robbie a red kite" She said, and they stopped to look up at the bird which had captured a thermal and was rising higher and higher into the sky.

"Actually" Robbie said, looking at her with an apologetic smile "It's a buzzard"

"Oh. What's the difference?"

"A red kite has a two pointed tail and longer feathers"

"Is that a fact?" She said snaking her arms around his waist with a grin

"Mmmhhmm" he said eyebrows raised with a smile and a nod of his head, his hands going around her back. He knew she was annoyed that she got the bird wrong and she knew he knew

"So now you know" he added grinning back "It must be nice to learn something new"

"Hmm" She said with a cheeky smile and on tip toes kissed him.

"Hey" he said "Don't try and change the subject, Hobson, I know your game, you're trying to detract from the fact that I knew something you didn't"

She nodded, her eyebrows raised and a contrary smile breaking into a chuckle "is the distraction working?" She asked and kissed him again

"Yep" he replied, laughing with her and kissing her back. He looked down at her for a few moments and she gazed back at him, enjoying the feel of his hands on her back as the call of the buzzard above them became fainter and mistier in volume. Small scrubland birds dotted about in the heather and a lizard skirted across the path behind them. It was peaceful and warm and they gazed at each other, both enjoying the moment. Robbie kissed her again and sighed with contentment. He pulled Laura in for a hug and as he did so he looked out over to the vast landscape behind her that stretched out down to the coast. He frowned, squinting against the sun.

"Ah, no! It's gone" He exclaimed, breaking their embrace.

"What has?" Laura asked

"The pub, there was on old inn, just down the road. Look, down there"

Laura turned and looked down to where Robbie pointed. She could see a pile of stone and rubble, barricaded off from the road with high steel fences. There was a skip and a digger.

"It's been demolished. I don't believe it. Pat's going to be upset when I tell him. He was obsessed with the place. It was an old smugglers pub. They used to all meet up here and do their deals in olden times"

Laura smiled at Robbie's side stepping of an actual date in time but listened intently as he continued his tale.

"Legend had it that one night a customs officer overhead a deal going on. He went to make an arrest but there was a fight and he was killed. Apparently they buried him under the fireplace and lit the fire so no-one could get to his body. The landlord of the pub made up some story about a devil's curse and that the fire should always be kept alight and since that day they'd never let it go out – even in summer"

"All sounds highly implausible" Laura said with a raised eyebrow. "How did they ever clean out the ashes in the grate?"

Robbie laughed and pulled her close to him again.

"I _knew_ you'd say something like that" He said, grinning down at her. "You're right, it is a bit impractical. Great story though. Pat used to love it. We'd stop for a last drink on the way back home to Oxford after our holiday and he loved to go and sit by the fire and look for the ghost of the custom's officer." He sighed again. "How things change. The fire's certainly out now that's for sure"

Laura saw Robbie's smile fade and a sadness settle in his eyes. She knew he was thinking of his son. Things had been strained between Robbie and Pat since before Val had died. Laura knew that situation wasn't dire by any stretch but that Robbie felt that Pat had distanced himself from him and the rest of the family and he wasn't sure why. Laura knew that Pat was a troubled soul from what Robbie had told her. She suspected that Pat held a lot of anger towards to Robbie, even though it was unfounded. She also knew that Robbie felt a sense of guilt for not being more hands on when Pat was in his teenage years. He'd told Laura that he'd left a lot of it to Val because he'd been concentrating on work.

"You and Pat will work things out, Robbie, I know you will" she said kindly.

"Aye. Maybe." said Robbie, his voice sounded unconvinced.

"We could try and get over to see him, plan a trip to the states, see my brother and if Pat's not working , or even if he is, we could visit him?" Laura ventured. Pat worked with cattle and livestock, something he had done when he'd first gone to Australia after his mother's death and had then moved to the USA where he'd found work on the huge ranches there.

"Yeah" Robbie said again and roused a weak smile of thanks to Laura for her gentle efforts of consolation and advice she offered each time he felt bad about his relationship with his son.

"I dunno" he said with a sigh. "I love it up here, y'know? but it makes me think stuff sometimes that makes me wish things were different. I mean I think of the past and how different things are now, with Pat I mean."

He looked down to the demolished pub. "He said to me once, after Val died, that if I loved her as much as I said I did then why hadn't I been around more, why was I always at work? He was right. I should have been there, for him and Lyn, as well as Val"

"You had to work, Robbie, to provide for them. Deep down he knows that. Pat and Lyn had a wonderful upbringing with you and Val, Robbie, you know that, it's nothing you did or didn't do. People deal with things in many different ways. Whatever issues Pat has all you can do is to keep reaching out to him, he knows you love him, keep being patient and he'll come round."

Robbie looked at Laura. She was right, he knew that, but he still felt bad.

"You must have lots of memories from round here, Robbie, of good times. Memories of Val and the kids? Don't forget how good the past was. It's a solid foundation to help you move forward with Pat."

Robbie looked at Laura. Her face was bright and encouraging. Her words helped. And he smiled at her, feeling a little better.

"You're right." He said. "I have got lots of memories from being up here. All of them good. And now I've got good ones with you too. I'm a lucky man."

Laura gave him a warm smile and she took his hand and they walked back to the car


	5. Chapter 5 Grand Designs

By mid-afternoon Robbie and Laura reached the coast again, the air became salty and fragrant with ozone and as they got closer to Robin Hood's Bay Laura read out directions to the cottage she'd received from an email and after a couple of wrong turns and a heated exchange between the pair of them about what constituted as a farm track they eventually found the cottage. At first glance it appeared full of charm and was set well back from the main road with a gravelled area at the front where they could park the car. Laura found the keys after entering a code she had been sent by the owner into a small digital safety box concealed under a wooden bench at the front of the cottage and they unlocked the front door and went inside, lugging their bags with them. They took their shoes off in the little entrance porch and then went to explore their home for the next few days.

It soon became apparent that it wasn't a traditional cottage but rather a single-story farm dwelling and collection of small out buildings. The whole place had been renovated and seamlessly linked together in a modern yet sympathetic way that didn't detract from the old charm of the rural buildings.

"Hey this is a smashing place love!" Robbie exclaimed as he looked round. "It's like something out of that _Grand Designs_ program." He said with a grin to Laura who looked equally impressed with the place.

Through the small entrance area was a spacious living room that opened out into a large dining area and kitchen. On the left there was a doorway and Robbie took their bags into what he could see was the bedroom.

"Hey!" he shouted to Laura who was still looking round the sitting room. "There's a wood burner in the bedroom as well as in there".

Laura joined him and pulled an excited face at the bedroom. It was very much to her taste and looked a calm and peaceful room with lots of light but with some decent shutters on the windows that looked like they could block out the glare of the morning sun as well as any coastal squalls.

"Shame the weathers too warm to try it out eh? Hey maybe we could come back in the winter?" Robbie said with a boyish excitement.

Laura smiled at Robbie's enthusiasm. The place _was_ nice and she secretly was pleased by the fact. It had been fate and luck to get somewhere like this at such short notice.

The whole cottage was furnished in an upmarket modern rustic style, with an element of clean Scandinavian uncluttered homeliness. Laura was impressed. She agreed with Robbie about the wood burning stove in the bedroom and cursed the late August heat.

She went into the living room area which lead into a large extension with floor to ceiling windows that ran along the whole width of the back of the building and housed the dining and kitchen area. Laura went up to the bifold doors which looked out into a charming and established cottage garden. Opening them she went outside. There was a wood pile and a gravelled patio with outdoor furniture and a gas BBQ. At the end of the garden, in the distance, she could see the sea, a grey greenish colour with the sun on it.

In the bedroom Robbie went through another door and found himself in a small stone corridor with skylights that led to a bathroom. Another door in the bathroom took him via another well lit stone corridor into the kitchen area.

In the garden Laura took a deep breath of the fresh seaside air. She could get very used to this she thought. The garden was stocked with traditional cottage garden plants – dahlias, rudbekias, salvias and other flowers that shone like jewels in the sunshine. There were also seaside plants and herbs – rosemary, sea bluebell, thyme and sage. There was an impressive potted palm and an olive tree that she suspected came indoors in the winter months. Above her in the blue of the sky a great black backed gull soared over the garden and she shielded her eyes from the sun to watch it for a moment before it tacked off on the sea breeze and disappeared from view.

"Laura?" Robbie's voice drifted through from the kitchen area to the garden

"Did you ask for a bottle of champagne?"

"What? No?" Laura frowned. She made her way into the kitchen. Robbie stood by the windows where the mystery bottle of champagne had been left on the nearby wooden worktop.

"Oh, there's a note" Robbie said, going towards the bottle to investigate further. He picked up the folded piece of card that had been placed next to the bottle.

Robbie opened it then winced slightly as he saw the first line of the letter. He read it out.

"Dear Mr and Mrs Hobson" he looked at Laura with a half-smile of cheeky amusement mixed with trepidation of her reaction.

She scowled back at him "Argh!"

"Welcome to Sandy Nook" he continued, reading the letter

"I hope you have a wonderful stay here. Please accept my apologies that the hot tub. . . " Robbie raised his eyebrows and shot a glance at Laura

". . . is temporarily out of order. I am waiting for an engineer to fix it as soon as possible. I hope the champagne makes up for the inconvenience. Please don't hesitate to get in touch if there is anything else I can do for you."

There was a phone number and the letter was signed _Andrew._

"What is it with people making assumptions that if you're a woman and you're with a man then you _must_ be married! Not to mention I paid with my card over the phone and it doesn't say "Mrs" on there, it says _Dr Hobson_ for god's sake, I bloody spoke to the man for heaven's sake!"

Robbie put the note down and went up to Laura. She was fuming. He knew how much she hated the assumption she was a married woman. They'd had long discussions about it, mainly her telling him about patriarchal societal assumptions and how it affected all women from a base level upwards from cradle to grave. He winced again as he went towards her.

He put his hands round her waist. He could feel her bristling with irritation.

"Hey, come on Mrs Hobson, he said with a wink. "You'll make Mr Hobson sad, you know he doesn't like to see you upset. . .Hmm?" He leant in towards her and rubbed his nose against hers, raising his eyebrows with a smile.

"Robbie! You know how much it annoys me"

"I know, and I agree with all you say, you know that. But we're on holiday. Come on, save some of that irritation for when you get back home. Eh?"

In the car on the way Laura had taken another call from the lab which had turned out to be completely unnecessary and she'd delivered a caustic tirade to the recipient. Robbie hadn't been sure if how much the person on the other end of the phone was to blame but after hearing Laura dispense a searing portion of wrath he had a modicum of sympathy for them, despite himself being annoyed with the interruption to their holiday. Robbie raised his eyebrows at her in cautious hope and reluctantly she abated a little and he elicited a smile from her as his hands rubbed her back and gently pulled her towards him for a hug. He was right. They were on holiday and she was irritated about the call which in turn had driven her fury at the _Mrs Hobson_ comment. Since being with Robbie and his sweet easy going nature her own temperament had mellowed considerably. Friends had even commented on it. She liked that it had. She no longer felt so uptight about work issues and didn't bite people's heads off as much. It was down to Robbie. Being in love with him did wonders for her. She looked up at him still fuming but starting to simmer down a little.

"Why don't I put that champagne in the fridge?" He said, looking down at her. "We could have it later, if we feel like it?" He raised his eyebrows with silent questioning and a cautious smile. "And erm, it's shame about the hot tub?"

She laughed. "I didn't even know there was one!" She shook her head "it's not exactly high on my list of holiday cottage criteria"

"Well, it might be fun? If they fix it" he gave her backside a squeeze and kissed her. "Don't you think?"

"Yes" and, finally relenting the last of her irritation, she grinned back at him and then leant up to kiss him back.

That's better he said with a gentle chuckle when they pulled apart

"So, what shall we do with the rest of the afternoon?" He asked her.

"Let's head into Whitby, have a look round, find a supermarket and get some supplies. This weather is glorious, we could have a barbeque, make the most of this place." She was going through the cupboards and drawers in the kitchen and making an assessment of the contents.

"Maybe get some nice fresh fish" She continued "find a good butcher. It's been a while since we ate alfresco and that barbecue has a gas bottle so we won't have to wait eons for it to light." She opened the fridge. There was a complimentary carton of milk in there from the owner and she took it out with her eyebrows raised and a smile. She started to make a cup of tea for them both with her usual lightning efficiency.

Robbie nodded in agreement at her plans for a barbecue. Laura loved to cook and enjoyed the process from start to finish. It was something that Robbie appreciated. She was a good cook and she loved to cook for him and he was always more than happy to let her. A barbecue sounded great.

They took the tea into the little garden and Laura walked round chatting about the planting while Robbie sat at the outdoor table in the garden and smiled and enjoyed the view of both the sea in the distance and of Laura investigating the garden. He could tell she was enjoying herself as she drank her tea standing up, cradling the mug as she chatted about coastal planting schemes. She had calmed down he was pleased to see. He understood her anger about the assumption regarding her being a married woman. It was different for men, he'd not really thought about it until Laura had pointed it out to him. It was ok for men, she said, they had one title that never garnered any assumption or label. For women it was either Miss or Mrs and both exposed the woman as either married or not. Other than that there was Ms which in itself had a label of don't label me which to some misogynists was a red rag to a bull. He knew she wasn't into the institution of marriage and this always struck him as ironic as he knew how fiercely she loved him and would do anything for him, as if she had made an unspoken vow from her heart to love him until death. As for them actually getting married themselves, that was something he wasn't sure about. It was like telling her he loved her, it was at the same time the easiest and the most difficult thing to do. Verbalising his love for her somehow, paradoxically, made what they had seem so fragile. To admit how much he loved her meant it was there to be lost. He couldn't bear the thought. So it was easier just to enjoy each day with her and not think about the future or _until death do us part_. He felt a chill run through him again, deep inside like the night before when he'd spoken to the homeless woman. He frowned and looked up into the garden. Laura was smiling at him, her eyebrows raised.

"Look" she said "the infamous hot tub" She pointed towards a row of evergreen trees at the opposite end of the patio that concealed the hot tub and a small set of wooden steps up to it.

The chill Robbie felt disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. He smiled and raised his eyebrows at Laura's discovery.

"Come on" she said, "Let's shake a leg and head into Whitby, all the fresh fish will have gone if we don't go soon"

"Aye" he said and took her hand that she offered him and as he got up from the chair he pulled her to him, suddenly aware of what he'd been thinking about, about how fragile things were, about how much he loved her. She looked at him, aware of an intensity in his eyes that was something he didn't often show. He held her close, holding her tight and kissing her cheek as he did so. She hugged him back, caught unawares. Pulling away she looked at him.

"Are you ok?" she asked with curious amusement, and a shade of alarm.

"I am. Come on, let's go to Whitby"


	6. Chapter 6 Sandy Nook

Robbie and Laura were soon in Whitby. The charming and historic small fishing port was busy. The roads were choked with traffic and the streets packed with tourists but there was fresh air from the sea and the sun was warm in a sky with soft white fluffy clouds that seemed to change their shape almost imperceptibly as the afternoon wore lazily on. The ruined Abbey and the old church on the hill looked down at the bustling streets and seemed quite content of their place in the ancient town.

Robbie found a parking space on the west cliff and they walked down the steep road past the east pier and onto the pier road that ran alongside the river Esk. The waterway was also busy with boats and there were several large impressive tall ships moored along the quayside. There were fishermen working and shouting and a scent of fish on the breeze that although strong wasn't completely unpleasant.

They walked leisurely, taking in the atmosphere and allowing the other tourists to flow around them. Robbie pointed out a fish and chip restaurant that was touted to be the best in the country. They checked the opening times and decided it would be an obvious option for lunch one day.

Crossing the big bridge over the river Esk they walked along the narrow streets of the old town. The buildings, some of them old fishermen's houses which were now mostly shops and pubs, were crammed together in a ramble of brick and slate. Laura loved the place immediately. She had read about Whitby but Robbie's stories of the area gave the place a special feel to it. She could tell he was enjoying showing her round. Earlier, she had been worried about him; first on the moor when he was talking about Pat and then later at the cottage he had seemed a little wistful, not like himself. She wasn't surprised. Returning to old places could do that to you, bring up old emotions and thoughts from the depths. Even good memories could make you feel oddly melancholic. For now though, he seemed as he always was, happy and cheerful and with that, his special look he gave her. The look that was reserved only for her that told her he was glad to be with her, just the two of them, spending time together.

It was the week before the Whitby folk music festival but there were signs of festivities starting early with buskers and musicians performing on the streets. On Church Street they listened to a young man singing as he played _Scarborough Fair_ on a battered old guitar. The late afternoon sun was still powerful and they stood for a while and enjoyed the music in the sunshine. Robbie threw a pound coin into his open guitar case. _She once was a true love of mine _ sang the guitarist and Robbie winked at Laura and took her hand and gave it a squeeze and they walked on, the bittersweet melody drifting with them as they explored the narrow cobbled streets of the old town.

Laura found a butcher and a fishmonger and bought a selection of items that would cook well on the barbecue. She also earmarked a couple of shops she wanted to look in but it was starting to get towards closing time so they headed back to the car with their bags of fish and steaks.

On the way they walked by the quayside again and Robbie stopped to watch what appeared to be a police exercise involving boats and sniffer dogs. He took an interest from a professional point of view and watched for a while. Laura could see he was engrossed.

"I'm going to go to the loo" she said, placing a hand on his back, "you watch your coastguards or whatever they are, I'll be back in a sec" and she went to cross the road to the public toilets.

As she got to the entrance, she was nearly knocked off her feet by a toddler, obviously broken free from his mother and on a mission to escape the toilets. He came crashing out of the door and ran smack bang into her legs. Taken by surprise at first, Laura quickly snapped into professional mode and, fearing for the safety of the small child managed to grab him before he ran towards the road.

"Hello" she said, "Who are you running from eh?"

The little boy regarded her at first with surprise, and then dismay at the fact that he'd been stopped in his tracks. He looked at her for a moment, wide eyed and then, still wanting to run off, started to squirm in Laura's grasp. She managed to hold onto him, trying not to grip too hard. Still wriggling and trying to escape her arms, the little boy started to protest, and tears and the beginnings of a tantrum began to threaten. Laura was just about to ask him where his mummy was when a weak and exhausted voice issued from the doorway of the toilets.

"Henry, oh Henry what are you doing?"

Crouched down and still gripping onto the little boy who had now started to scream, Laura turned to see a woman emerge from the doorway. Laura guessed she was in her early 30's. She was thin and pale and looked exhausted and perhaps a bit ill. The woman looked down at Laura and the toddler.

"Oh, I'm so sorry" She said. "Thank you. Henry why must you keep running off like this" she said feebly.

The woman took the child who Laura managed to almost wrestle to her in an attempt to stop him escaping her grasp again.

"He's a strong little chap isn't he?" Laura said with a sympathetic smile.

"What? Oh, thank you, yes he is. I'm so sorry"

"Not a problem" Said Laura. "I was worried he'd run off so I grabbed him"

"I'm so sorry. Thank you."

"No need to be sorry" Said Laura kindly and she stood up, smiling. The woman, despite her gratitude avoided her eye. Laura looked at her. There was a bruise on her neck that Laura couldn't help but notice. Laura's years of clinical and criminal experience and expertise automatically came to the forefront and she could see that the bruise had been caused by pressure to the neck, possibly from someone's hand.

The bruise was big, she could see that it may have been from a man's hand. On the woman's arms Laura also saw bruises – fresh ones and older ones. To an untrained eye they would have looked like nothing much but to Laura they told a story she didn't want to know. She looked briefly and discretely with her expert eye at the child. Mercifully there were no visible bruises and he looked healthy enough. She smiled again at the woman. Whatever was happening to her there was little Laura could do.

"Well, take care" Said Laura.

Briefly, the woman looked up at her and made eye contact. She had seen Laura smile at her and felt kindness from it. There was a fleeting moment where Laura sensed that the woman wanted to break down, drop everything, including the child and tell her something. But the moment passed. Seagulls wheeled and cried above them and the breeze from the sea blew the woman's hair across her face and eyes, the moment passed and she looked away. The woman walked off, wrestling with difficulty against the small child who was now screaming. Laura watched them go. She felt anxious all of a sudden. It was odd. She tried not to extrapolate into a narrative what she'd seen on the woman's body, but it was hard not to. For a minute, frowning, she watched the woman and the child walk off and turn up a side street. Then she went into the toilets before returning to Robbie on the quayside.

"Sounds like we're all set for a feast" said Robbie as they headed back up the hill towards the car park. Laura was telling him how she was going to marinade the fresh mackerel they'd bought. She didn't tell Robbie about the woman. It had been a small encounter, one that could have happened anywhere, but still, it preyed on her mind while they had walked back up to the west cliff. By the time they reached the top, however, she was distracted enough with Robbie's enthusiasm for the barbecue that the encounter with the woman and the toddler faded from the front of her mind.

They reached the top of the cliff and took a moment to get their breath back after the climb before Laura started to lead them towards the car.

"Eh, hang on, come with me a minute" Robbie said, grabbing her hand suddenly and pulling her in a different direction than to where the car was parked.

"What!?" She said with a laugh and a bit of a frown of irritation. She wanted to get going and go to the supermarket for supplies for their stay. They'd bought a box of essentials with them from Oxford such as teas and coffee but there were a few fresh things they needed.

"Here" said Robbie. He led her to a huge structure on the hilltop. Laura had noticed it earlier on when they arrived but Robbie had been talking to her about the abbey on the opposite cliff and she'd not had chance to ask him what it was. At first glance Laura had thought it was just a weathered old wooden archway, perhaps part of an old ship hull, randomly placed, then she had a closer look and realised it was an old whalebone jaw. It was huge. Robbie brought them to a stop just under it.

"It's good luck to kiss under here" He said, with a sweet smile and leant in towards her. Laura's frown disappeared and smiling she stood on her toes as he took her hand and pulled her to him and kissed her; then he looked at her, still smiling. He didn't say anything, but Laura knew it was a special moment for him, for them. He continued to look at her, then he chuckled slightly.

"Robbie?!" She said. She recognised the look as one of slight mischief. She soon cottoned on. "It's not good luck at all is it?!" She exclaimed.

"No" he said, laughing. "I just wanted to kiss you and well, I already feel pretty lucky"

She shook her head in exasperation but nonetheless smiled back at him, holding his gaze for a while and enjoying the candid simplicity of his sentiment before heading back to the car.

That evening they enjoyed the fresh food cooked on the barbecue. They had called at a supermarket on the way back to the cottage and were well stocked up with food and drink. The night was warm, almost sultry, and after they had eaten, they remained outside for a while and finished the last of their wine. Robbie looked up at the stars. The sky was black and they appeared more numerous than back in the city where there was light pollution. Laura sighed contentedly. She was relaxing. Thoughts of the lab were far away and all she had to think about was being on holiday with Robbie. In turn Robbie could tell she was relaxing. He was glad, closing up your career was no small task, especially for a perfectionist like Laura. This break away was doing her no end of good he thought.

Laura yawned and then finishing the last of the wine she stood up. Robbie caught her yawn and joined her, stretching his back in the process. They both headed inside and Laura went to get ready for bed while Robbie tidied the dishes into the dishwasher. When he 'd finished he locked up then went into the bathroom and washed and cleaned his teeth before padding into the bedroom. Laura was in bed, the duvet just about covering her.

"Are you naked?" he asked

"Yes I am, it's almost too hot to sleep"

"It is now, bloody hell" he said as he got into bed. Laura was reading her book, a battered old penguin copy of Dracula. He snuggled up to her, his hands under the thin summer duvet that lightly covered her.

"Great place this, isn't it?" He said as Laura continued to read

"Mmm" she said, only half listening, engrossed in her book. She had got to the part set in Whitby and was enjoying it having just been there.

"What's it called? Sandy Nook?"

"Uh-humm" said Laura. She was getting a bit annoyed. Robbie knew perfectly well she was reading, and he sometimes did have a mildly irritating habit of chatting when she was trying to concentrate.

He carried on talking and she carried on reading. She loved _Dracula_ and had read it several times throughout her life. She often returned to classic fiction she'd read before and each time she discovered new things that she'd not noticed on previous reads or that had different meaning at different times in her life. It had been years since she'd read it and it had seemed the obvious choice for some classic reading whilst in the area.

"Don't you think?" Robbie had been chatting to her, his voice was soft and low but she carried on reading nonetheless.

She managed to read another paragraph but was further interrupted from her reading by Robbie's hand under the covers that had found its way onto her leg, just above the knee.

"What? Robbie?" She said, with a slight irritation in her voice, despite his hand gently stroking the skin of her thigh.

"Sandy Nook" his voice was low again and he looked at her as his hand went even further up her thigh. Because of his accent, when he said the word _nook_ it rhymed with spook. His accent was often her undoing. Sometimes he only had to whisper something, anything, in her ear and the lilt of his voice would send a shiver down her whole body.

"What _are_ you wittering on about, Robbie!?" She said, half smiling and half irritated and now fully distracted by his hand.

"Sandy Nook. Sounds like something you'd complain about after a day on Scarborough beach" he said and with a grin leant in to kiss her.

"Robbie. . ." she protested with a laugh and an amused frown at his joke, but as he kissed her and his hand continued its exploration, she gave up any complaint. With a thud her book fell to the floor and then with her hand free and her attention otherwise engaged with Robbie's caresses, she felt for the switch and turned off the bedside light for the night, the only sound in the darkness their soft laughter and then, only the quiet sound of their kisses.


	7. Chapter 7 Long Forgotten Tales

The next morning dawned fresher than the night that had passed. The temperature had dropped in the early hours and the sun was hazy in the early morning mist.

Laura and Robbie enjoyed a lazy morning with coffee and breakfast in the cottage dining area with the doors open and the fresh air and, as the mist cleared, sunshine pouring into the room. Laura read the news on her iPad, while Robbie was content to just sit and watch the birds in the little garden. There were sparrows in the herb bushes looking for insects and towards the end of the garden a pair of goldfinches were feeding from a teasel head. The sound of gulls was ever present and Robbie stretched his legs out in relaxation. Sitting next to him, Laura's hand rested on his legs which she occasionally and idly caressed, imparting bits of news stories to him and updating him on the latest current government status of which he had only a perfunctory interest in but still listened to her.

After breakfast they ventured down into Robin Hood's bay and had a long walk along the beach.

The bay seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see and they walked along the wet sands for a while. The horizon wasn't as clear as it had been on the previous days and the sky was pale, bruised with grey and silver clouds. They held hands and chatted as they walked. Robbie told Laura that there was often treasure to be found along the shoreline, after a storm, if you were lucky.

"Like what?" She asked

"Oh, all sorts" said Robbie as they walked by the water's edge, the sea racing up the wet sand to their feet as if someone had tipped a bucket of water towards them on a flat floor.

"Bits of nice wood, driftwood - it burns good, we should take some home if we find any, you get nice colours sometimes when it burns, must be the salt." They walked a little further and Robbie picked up what looked like a shiny bit of dried leather.

"Mermaid's purse" he said with a smile and gave it to Laura "Sometimes you can find bits of Whitby jet and if you're really lucky you might find a bit of amber."

Laura raised her eyebrows in surprise at the thought. Amber and Jet sounded nice but she didn't want to tell Robbie that burning driftwood could give of poisonous vapours. Instead she smiled at him and squeezed his hand as they continued along the water's edge.

They walked a little more, zigzagging and laughing as they did so to avoid the tide as it lapped closer to their feet before fizzing into the wet dark sand.

"Tommy found a mammoth's tusk on the beach not far from here" Robbie said, looking towards the brown crumbling cliffs. Beneath the cliffs the rocks were strewn with boulders and smooth rounded stones, some covered with bright green sea moss and shining swathes of purple and olive brown seaweed.

"Ah yes, Doggerland." said Laura. "The land bridge that linked Europe to the British Isles in Mesolithic times before the rise in sea level. The area was rich in habitation I believe"

"Yeah, something like that" Robbie pursed his lips and gave Laura a sideways glance.

"What?!" she said laughing

"Smart arse" Robbie said back to her.

"What did Tommy do with the tusk?" She asked, still laughing softly.

"Sold it to a collector or a museum I think, bought a motorbike with the proceeds and totalled it a week later" Robbie smiled at the memory and Laura joined him. He had painted a vivid picture of Tommy with his stories and now Laura had seen the photo of them both she had an even better sense of the time they'd spent in the area all those years ago.

They walked on a little further before coming to a stop, just short of the tide, silver and foamy edged in the sunlight over the sand.

"How about we have fish and chips for tea?" Robbie said as he looked back towards the little fishing village.

"Dinner? Actually, I have something planned for us, if it passes muster with you. My treat." Said Laura.

Robbie raised his eyebrows at her, his curiosity piqued. "Oh?"

"There a rather good little Michelin starred restaurant in Whitby. I've booked us a table and a taxi to get us there so we can enjoy a drink with the meal."

"Hey, that sounds great love" he said pulling her in for a hug, his hands finding the familiar territory of her back and hips beneath her jersey top. "When did you organise that then?"

"This morning, when you were in the shower"

"You little sneak, you". He said with a smile. "It's going to cost a bit though, isn't it? A fancy meal?"

"Like I said, my treat."

"Well it sounds great. And how about_ I_ treat us to a pint and a bag of crisps in return? I've worked up a bit of a thirst walking along these sands"

"A fair trade I'm sure" she said. "That pub we passed on the way to the beach looked nice."

So, they headed back into the pretty little seaside hamlet where the houses seemed to tumble down the steep hills stopping just short of the beach as if daring each other to go further and into the sea. At the pub they both had a local ale and a basket of chips. Robbie told Laura more stories of holidays and adventures in the area and Laura told him how she once got stuck with 3 school friends on a rock at high tide on a geography field trip in Cornwall.

After the pub they went back to the cottage and had tea in the garden. Laura read her book while Robbie, using Laura's iPad, emailed his daughter and, at Laura's suggestion, also sent an email and a photo of Whitby to Pat. The day, still pleasant despite the gathering cloud, slipped by lazily until it was time to get ready to go for their meal.

In the past Robbie had been sceptical about _posh food_. He and Val had enjoyed going out for meals and trying new cuisines but he'd been just as content with traditional food, _no fuss food_, as he called it. When he started going out with Laura she had introduced him to new things he'd never really thought he'd like, including Michelin restaurants. If he was being honest, he'd always thought it was a bit over his head. Laura had scolded him for having this attitude and to his surprise and delight it was something he'd come to enjoy immensely. The restaurant in Whitby was no exception. It was food he recognised but elevated beyond his expectations. Scallops with black pudding and gooseberry, line caught seabass with fresh crab and sorrel and to finish moorland bilberries and lemon curd with thyme foam. They enjoyed paired wines with the food and at the end of the meal they were served coffee and tiny bits of chocolate bark with caramelized seaweed. As they knew they would be getting a taxi home they also indulged in a digestif each.

Sipping at his brandy, Robbie smiled at Laura over the table as she paid the bill. Part of him felt he should pay but Laura had changed his attitudes to old fashioned chivalry and customs. Good manners were never out of fashion, however, and he knew that Laura loved it when he held the door open for her, although she might not readily admit it. They still had their drinks to finish after paying the bill and it felt like the perfect end to a lazy relaxing day. Laura was giving him one of her looks that made him feel like a 21-year-old again and he was looking forward to getting back to the cottage. He treated her to a wink and they gazed at each other for a while, both understanding and enjoying the unspoken conversation between them both.

Suddenly, in another part of the restaurant, there was a commotion. Laura looked up and over Robbie's shoulder to see a man and a woman being led from one table to another. The waiter was trying to calm the man down who seemed full of barely unexploded rage about the table they had been taken from. What the issue was exactly wasn't clear, but he was telling the waiter that his wife was upset because of something that the waiter had or hadn't done. Laura saw the woman first and with surprise recognised her as the woman with the little boy she had rescued from the day before. As the man turned to spit another veiled insult at the poor waiter, Laura saw his face.

In that instant, she understood why the woman looked the way she did.

In a sickening split second, Laura saw she recognised the man. Her stomach flipped violently like a fish out of water and she felt a rush of prickling fear in her extremities. Her mouth suddenly went dry. She gasped inaudibly to herself and looked down at her grappa glass, her head swimming in panic.

She looked up again. There was no mistaking it. She knew him. Laura could see now that the pall on the woman's face wasn't illness but was actually worry and anxiety - anxiety so chronic and so deeply entrenched that it had manifested itself as an illness in her body.

The waiter led the man and the woman to another table, out of view. Laura swallowed, she felt a rising nausea in her stomach but pushed it down, trying to keep her breathing steady.

"Bit overboard eh?" Robbie said as he turned back to Laura. He'd not seen the woman or the man but had heard the commotion and by the time he'd turned, inevitably, to look at the scene, the waiter had led the pair out of view and he'd only just seen the back of them, following behind the waiter. Robbie looked at Laura. She was as white as a sheet.

"Are you ok love? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Erm yes. I think I heard my phone go off in my bag I'd better check it. I'm just going to the loo."

And quickly Laura left the table, knocking over her water glass in the process and leaving Robbie more than a little puzzled.

Once in the relative privacy of the toilets, Laura locked herself in a cubicle,

_No, oh god no, it can't be can it? After all these years, of all the places, can it really be him?_ She thought to herself. _It can't be_ she thought but she knew it was, when she'd seen the man's face it had been undeniable.

It had been years, decades, since she'd seen him, she'd blocked it out, time had faded things in her mind but now, seeing him, it had all flooded back in high definition clarity in her mind. Not only that but she had seen who he was with. The woman from earlier. Dreadfully, it all now made sense.

Sitting on the closed lid of the toilet Laura heard someone come into the toilets. She had to wait a while for them to leave before letting herself out of the toilet cubicle. They seemed to take an age, Laura heard the jangle of a bangle and the sound of clothes being adjusted, the snap of a makeup compact closing. Finally, the person left and she she heard the heavy door of the toilets close snd was free to leave the cubicle.

She opened the toilet door and went to the sink and splashed cold water on her face and ran her hands under the cold tap, letting the water course over her wrists in an attempt to cool the heat of panic she felt.

She looked at herself in the mirror and rubbed her face to try and summon some composure back into it. She hoped she could hide her distress from Robbie.

Back at the table, Robbie finished the last of his brandy and ate another of the tiny little hand-crafted chocolates that had come with the coffee they'd just had. He frowned, checking his watch and looked towards the toilet doors. Laura had been a while. Presumably she had had to call the lab. He was getting a bit sick of this for her. For himself even. They were supposed to be on holiday, away from work, but equally he knew she would answer the calls if they came through, she had told them to get in touch after all. But he was concerned by their frequency. It wouldn't make for an easy transition for her into retirement if she was getting all this stress from the process of handing over the lab.

Finally, Laura appeared from the toilets. She told Robbie she'd listened to a message from the lab and that she was annoyed and that she would have to call them in the morning. He was cross for her but she played it down. They left the restaurant and Laura didn't look again to seek out what she already knew. It was him, no mistaking it. She didn't want to have to see him again.

As they walked away from the restaurant, Laura steeled herself to act with as much normality as possible. She didn't want Robbie to suspect anything and mercifully she had the lab to blame if he did think there was something wrong.

After leaving the restaurant they walked for a while by the Esk and then waited for the taxi to pick them up and take them back to the cottage. Laura sat in the back of the car and luckily Robbie was distracted by the driver, who was from Middlesbrough, and spent the journey chatting to him about football.

Back at the cottage Laura went straight to the bathroom. She took her makeup off and washed her face and then cleaned her teeth before getting changed into a nightshirt.

She got into bed and lay on her side, turning out the light on her side of the bed. She didn't want to read tonight.

She wanted to tell Robbie about what was on her mind, talk through it with him. But was it really worth it? To dredge up things that had long ago sunk away into the depths of the past? What would be the point, because she knew it would be painful to talk of the things, and Robbie would help her, of course, but she didn't want to pull him into it, for his sake. She knew if she told him he would, by default, be upset for her, possibly angry and she didn't want that for her or for him. These were her issues and telling Robbie troubles she'd had long long ago, and had until now, she realised, pushed away, would do nothing for him. Best to keep it to herself. She knew deep down this was stupid. Things left would fester. Things half resolved often came back stronger, like a weed, strangling and choking reason and rationality. But still, she wanted to keep Robbie out of it all, for both their sakes.

Robbie came out of the bathroom and got in beside her, "Bit cooler tonight eh?" he said and she felt the bed sink as he lay next to her, scooting up to her back, wrapping his arms around her.

"Hey, come here, I need my cockles warming again" he whispered in her ear as he snuggled his face into her hair, kissing her neck and pulling her in close as he spooned her. His hands gently squeezed her with a soft and sensual promise.

Laura frowned, she felt wretched. She just wanted Robbie to hold her but telling him that would have to include an explanation. She couldn't face that. There was too much on her mind. Too much she needed to think about and she desperately wanted to talk to Robbie about it all but it just wasn't t worth it. Not for him.

"I'm a bit tired, Robbie" she said quietly trying not to sound as distressed as she felt.

"Oh, ok. Actually, yeah, me too, must be all the fresh air eh?" He was tired, but no more than usual and they'd had a fairly relaxing day, but he heard a weariness in her voice that backed up what she'd said.

She didn't say anything else but stroked his arm hoping to convey that it wasn't anything other than fatigue that was distracting her, even though it wasn't the truth. His easy-going nature and unquestioning thoughtfulness brought an emotion to her that tightened her throat and threatened her with tears.

She swallowed them back and composed herself.

"Tell me a story about Whitby" she said, hoping her voice would not betray her.

Robbie frowned. It wasn't like her to turn down a nighttime cuddle that they both knew would lead to more. If anything, it was he who was the one who was always dead tired at bedtime. There was something in her voice that set a distant alarm ringing. They often chatted in bed like this, talking and laughing, telling stories, debriefing about the day, it was something he loved, but when she specifically asked him to talk to her it often meant she wanted a distraction from her thoughts. Something to keep her inner dialogue from going on the rampage. But that night, as far as he knew, there was nothing wrong. He convinced himself that possibly it was the lab back in Oxford troubling her, so, he ignored the alarm at the back of his mind and talked as she had asked him to.

"Ah, well let's see." He said with a smile. "I've already told you about the time when Pat broke his ankle running down the steps from the Church and Abbey and we had to go to York to get it set. Let me think. . . Oh, I don't think I told you about the bells did I?"

"No, I don't think so" she replied quietly, squeezing his hand gently to keep trying to convey she was ok.

So, Robbie told Laura about the legend of the Whitby abbey bells, and despite the troubles in her mind she found herself lulled by his voice and his simple rendering of historical facts mixed with folklore.

He told her of how Henry the Eighth had wanted a divorce so he changed his religion from Catholicism to Church of England and in the process he destroyed and dissoluted all the monasteries in the kingdom. Whitby Abbey was no exception and it was stripped of its gold and other treasures. The big abbey bells that had rung out for centuries over the town were also taken as valuable loot for Henry to sell. Talking softly into her ear, Robbie told Laura how it had been a sunny calm evening as the distraught townsfolk watched the ship, carrying the abbey bells, leave for London. Many had wept as the ship left the harbour along with the precious and beloved bells. The sea was a flat as a mirror, calm as a lake, so it was with much mystery that, only a mile out to sea, the ship simply sank without explanation, taking the bells with it onto the seabed. No one had a reason for the ship sinking, perhaps it was the weight of the bells, but many believed it was the bells' wishes to stay in sight of the abbey on the cliff. On a stormy night, Robbie explained to Laura, still to this day, you can hear the abbey bells ringing in the currents, distant and unseen beneath the waves.

With his story at an end Laura closed her eyes. She was still wide awake but she didn't want Robbie to know. He leant over to see if she was asleep and her ruse worked.

"Night love" he said softly and gently kissed her cheek. Then she felt him settle down next to her and within a few minutes he was fast asleep.

Slow hot tears rolled silently down Laura's face and soaked the pillow beneath. After a while she stopped crying and eventually fell into a sleep, and in that sleep full of bad feelings, a frown shadowed her face that if he had seen it would have signaled to Robbie that there was something very, very wrong.


	8. Chapter 8 Encounters

The next morning Laura awoke early. If she had troubles in her mind this was something that always happened. She would find herself wide-eyed in the early hours, her mind trying to resolve the problems that nagged her. Often it was for a benign reason; something niggling her about one of her staff or a conundrum to do with a case. Usually she found a solution. This morning, however, she struggled to resolve and think creatively about the problem. She looked at Robbie as he slept next to her, a soft snoring occasionally audible, his face relaxed. Since they had been together, he had been there for her, when her mind was unquiet, to help her talk through her problems or just to hold her. She had let him in. After years of dealing with things on her own, she had finally got used to not having to do so. To share the load. But she didn't feel she could do it this time. She turned her head away from him, as if trying to protect him from sensing her distress, and stared at the ceiling of the cottage bedroom. Her thoughts returned to the night before, raking over her emotions like nails on a patch of raw skin.

With a lurch of her stomach Laura thought of the man in the restaurant. She cursed the twist of fate that had made their paths cross again. What was he doing here? Why had things dictated that their paths should cross now? A frown cut across her forehead as her mind set forth a deluge of memories and emotions from long ago.

The man's name was Rex Winterson and she had known him when she was a young woman. He was older than her, by 10 years and a lot older than his young wife. The thought made Laura recoil. He obviously hadn't changed. She pushed the thoughts down as if trying to swallow something unpleasant -quickly and switching focus else it would make her very sick. The poor woman. And the little boy. It had been a very, very long time since her dealings with Rex but from what she had seen of his wife she knew some of the anguish the woman might be experiencing. What were they doing in Whitby? _Of all the places_. She sighed, her lips tightly closed, the breath escaping her nose slowly. There was nothing she could do. Despite dredging up the past after seeing him, as unpleasant as it was, her thoughts were now with the woman and the little boy.

Robbie awoke that morning feeling rested after a good sleep. He stretched and felt warm and relaxed under the duvet and could tell the temperature had dropped over night. A grey cooler light was filtering through the blinds on the windows of the cottage and as he pulled round he looked at Laura in the early morning light. She was on her back and awake, her hands placed tensely over her ribs. She was obviously still thinking about the lab. He reached over and sleepily placed a hand over one of hers. She said nothing but placed one of hers back over his. He fell back into a half sleep and dozed for a while before fully waking up to find she had risen and gone to make them coffee.

During breakfast she was quiet, offering him only the odd smile and deliberate verbal response which he knew she had mustered up for him, so that he wouldn't worry. He knew her too well now. After breakfast, as they were about to clear the table, he pulled her to him. Laura knew that he knew there was something not quite right. He held her close for a while before pulling back from her and studying her face. Something was still wrong. But what it was he had no idea. Other than the lab what else could it be? If it _was _something else, she would tell him. He knew that. So, he thought, it had to be the lab.

"I can tell you're still wound up by the lab" He said to her, gently rubbing her arms to try and comfort her. "How about we go into Whitby and you can have a relaxing massage at that little spa place we saw the other day?"

They had passed a boutique health and beauty room that had treatments including Thai head massages. Laura was a sucker for a good massage and Robbie knew that.

"What do you reckon eh?" He said with a sweet smile, his eyebrows raised with gentle questioning "Turn off your phone and fully relax for a couple of hours? I'm sure the lab will cope if they can't get hold of you for ten minutes. We are on holiday after all"

Laura could see that it was a good solution for the supposed predicament that Robbie saw her in. So, she agreed. Maybe it wasn't a bad idea anyway. The other option was to just come clean and tell Robbie about everything. But as he'd just said, they were on holiday. Not the time or place to dredge up old memories that would upset her and by default of her being upset, affect him too. She just needed to get over the recollections that had resurfaced, deal with them and move on. He didn't have to know about any of it.

"What will you do?" She asked him

"Oh I'll be ok, I'll watch the boats"

"For a couple of hours?" She said, a slight smirk finding its way onto her lips, despite her distress.

"Yeah! Don't you worry about me. What do you reckon?"

"Ok" she said. At the very least she could mull things over and pull back some composure over the situation. Her agreeing to the proposal seemed to please Robbie. There were hardly any things she kept from him, not these days anyway. She'd had a health scare a while ago which had all turned out ok and she'd kept that from him, only telling him afterwards as she knew he would worry. He'd been upset she'd hidden it from him but it was more because he'd not wanted her to have to face something stressful like that on her own. He had understood her reasons however, but he had made her promise that if anything like it happened again, she was to tell him. She'd agreed. But this was something very different. He didn't need to know these particular troubles from the past, no matter how much she desperately wanted to talk to him about it all.

In Whitby, Robbie parked up again on the west cliff and they walked together into the town. The weather had turned. The wind was blowing and a valiant sun was trying to shine through the gathering silver-grey clouds. Out to sea the sky was gunmetal grey. It looked like a storm was brewing, the wind was coming in gusts and the sea was rough and troubled. It tumbled relentlessly onto the brown till of the beach. In the harbour and up the Esk, the boats were already jostling against the swell, their rigging lines jangling against their masts like a volley of warning bells.

Robbie walked with Laura to the little spa located in one of the narrow cobbled streets of the older part of the town and once she had gone in he walked back to the bridge. He watched the boats for a while; fishermen unloaded crates of fresh fish and crabs and holiday makers queued and boarded pleasure boats. He wouldn't fancy going on a boat trip in this weather he thought as a strong gust of wind suddenly blew in from the sea.

As he continued to walk over the bridge his attention was drawn from the boats to the busy road. _Never_ he thought. _It can't be the same one, can it?_ Amongst the traffic he saw the flashy car he'd seen earlier in the week in Scarborough. He managed to catch sight of the last part of the number plate and he confirmed to himself that it was the same. He stopped walking and watched at a distance from the bridge. Nothing happened for a minute or two, but the car had just pulled up and Robbie had a hunch something would go down so he kept on looking. After another minute or so, the door of the passenger side opened and Robbie heard a commotion from within. Even from the distance he was away from the car he could clearly hear shouting. He partly recognised the voice and a second later he confirmed again what he suspected.

The homeless woman that he'd seen in Scarborough got out. She swore loudly and aggressively at the driver of the car who was out of sight to Robbie. The woman screamed another insult into the car before slamming the door shut. The car tore off at speed and with a screech of spinning tyres on the road. Robbie watched as the car sped up the road for a short distance before doing a fast and dangerous U-turn in the road. The car then drove back and, now on the other side of the road, pulled up to a hard stop to where the woman was standing on the opposite pavement. Traffic had to slow down and car horns sounded as she ran across the road to the car. She banged on the car's tinted window, hammering with her fist. The window of the car wound down and Robbie finally saw the face of the driver. It was a man, older than the woman, healthy looking and well groomed in a way that showed he had money. The man said something calmly to the woman and Robbie could tell there was a heated exchange going on, the woman was starting to shout again but the man continued his glacial calmness in a calculated way that seemed to highlight her hysteria. He said something to the woman, which seemed to placate her, she leant her head into the window and for a few seconds the man continued to talk. He smiled at the woman but Robbie could see it was a cold smile, devoid of any emotional warmth. There was a moment of calm for a second. Robbie kept watching. He sensed again something was going to happen. He was right. After the brief interlude of comparative calm the man suddenly, and violently, lunged his hand from out of the open car window and grabbed the woman by the throat.

Robbie began to run. Enough was enough, it was time to step in. He quickly made his way over the bridge and towards the car. The bridge was busy and thick with tourists. It was difficult to get through and people were dawdling despite trying to get where they wanted and it wasn't easy to maneuver by them as quickly as Robbie would have liked. As he made his way, he could just keep his eye on the proceedings. The man was snarling at the woman now, hand still on her throat. A few people had stopped to watch, some looking on as if the events were entertainment, others appalled but not daring to step in to help what was clearly an assault on a vulnerable woman. By the time Robbie had made his way through the crowds and off the bridge the drama was over and the car had spun away. The woman, now on her knees and sobbing, had made her way onto the pavement. A few people had gathered round her but they all kept their distance. It was understandable; to most members of the public the situation was at best a spectacle and at worst a situation that they didn't want to get involved in. The former was the stronger of the two notions and as Robbie approached the scene a small crowd had gathered round the woman, staring and whispering.

"Right, back off, give her some space, come on, there's nothing to see." Robbie automatically went into professional mode and the small crowd pulled back hearing authority in his voice. They soon started to disperse and no one was really interested. After a few minutes the minor disturbance that had interrupted their tourist activities passed them by and Robbie and the woman were left on the windy pavement as the onlookers returned to their holiday making.

Robbie crouched down next to the woman. She was sobbing unreservedly, her face a mess of tears and grime. She didn't see Robbie at first then as her sobs slowed, she became aware that someone was in front of her.

"You ok?" He said gently but in a voice that rose above the din of the street and the wind that was gathering strength. He didn't touch her, just waited. Her sobbing stopped, gradually and after a few moments she lifted her head and she looked up at him through her tears and anguish and after a brief look of confusion she recognised him from their encounter in Scarborough.

"That's all I need, a bloody stalker" She said, her voice gruff with emotion and stress, frowning at Robbie and clawing the tears off her cheeks with dirty thin fingers.

Despite the situation Robbie smiled at the woman's humour in the face of the trauma she'd just been through.

"Listen" he said gently "I saw what just happened. Do you want me to call the police?"

The woman's reaction was instant "No!" She almost shouted and tears of what Robbie could see were born from fear and frustration gathered in her eyes.

"Ok, it's ok." Robbie tried to reassure her "I had a feeling that's what you'd say"

He looked down at the woman. Now he was closer to her and it was daylight he could see how ill she looked, with the bruise to her eye not helping things. Drugs had certainly taken their toll too. He knew he could get her some help, if she was receptive. He had a feeling if he could talk to her for a while he might be able to help. He knew he had to try. He stared at her, there was something familiar about her, something about her that he couldn't quite put his finger on. She stared back at him, warily but her anger and fear seemed to relent a little.

Robbie continued to talk gently

"How about a cup of tea? I was just about to go for one in that café over there. If you like I can get a takeaway and get one for you, although it's a bit chilly in this wind. We can sit inside if you like, it's up to you. You look as though you could do with a sit down and a warm drink. My name's Robbie, by the way."

The woman didn't really want to go for a cup of tea with this stranger she'd only seen a couple of times. But something about him reassured her. Her rational mind, despite being addled from the last hit of drugs she'd taken screamed at her not to trust anyone, even when they were being kind to her. Despite this, she agreed. She was cold and hungry.

On the other side of the town, Laura perused the treatments on offer at the little spa. It was a pleasant place, with small treatment rooms elegantly crammed into the fabric of the old tall thin building. The reception was scented with uplifting essential oils and decorated with sumptuous well cared for orchids and tropical ferns. Despite the relaxing and inviting atmosphere, Laura didn't want a very long massage, if at all. She just wanted a bit of space to think. She looked at the treatments, in another situation she would have jumped at the longer ones that would usually guarantee her relaxation and stress relief. Today, she felt that no amount of massage or essential oil would aid her. With Robbie's concern for her on her mind, however, she didn't want to deceive him any further so she decided on a 30-minute shoulders and neck massage. As she told the girl behind the counter her choice she happened to look out of the window. Across the street was a coffee shop, by chance she saw the door pushed open. She frowned when she saw who it was who left the coffee shop and biting her lip slightly paused for a second. She turned to the girl behind the desk.

"I'm sorry, something's come up. I'll have to do this another time" and Laura left the spa and stepped back out onto the cobbled crowded streets of the old town.


	9. Chapter 9 Tea and Sympathy

**AN: ****Thanks everyone for continuing to read my story and for taking time to leave a comment. It's taking longer to write than I hoped due to work commitments and, quite frankly, very boring and tedious life stuff. It's incredibly frustrating because all I want to do is write Robson! Anyway, this story is finally getting to where I wanted it to be ages ago, so many thanks for sticking with me and our heroes. There's still a lot to come in this story - I mentioned peril, romance and a hot tub and I aim to not disappoint. There will also be an obscene amount of fluff and I can't wait to get to the later chapters I have planned. But we're not quite there yet, so please stick with me, it won't be too long I promise. There will also be a nice M chapter for those who enjoy such and as always it will be posted separately and won't affect the story flow for those of you who don't do M. So a big thank you and indeed a big fist pump to all of you for your continued reception.**

**Ok. Back to Whitby!**

* * *

In the café Robbie went to the counter while the woman sat down by the window. After a few minutes he returned with a tray carrying two mugs and a chrome tea-pot that was standard issue for the greasy-spoon café they were in. He'd also bought some scones and tea cakes. He placed it all down on the table in front of the woman. He poured some tea and motioned to her to help herself to the food. She devoured the scones straight away and drank a mugful of milky sugary tea very quickly and Robbie noticed she seemed a little calmer with some food in her system.

"What's your name?" Robbie asked gently as he poured her some more tea. The woman hadn't said a word since they'd gone into the café. It wasn't an upmarket place, by any means, but Robbie could see she was uncomfortable and wasn't used to being in even such a perfunctory place. She looked at Robbie for a second as if his question, and whether she chose to answer or not, would signal the crossing of a boundary or barrier. She swallowed a mouthful of teacake followed by a gulp of tea without taking her eyes of Robbie. Finally, she spoke.

"My name's Rose" Her voice was rough and guarded but Robbie sensed she was opening up and that there was a slight bridge of trust between them with her offering him the knowledge of her name.

"That's a nice name" he said with a kind smile

"My mother thought so, before she dumped me in a fish crate when I'd just been born" she took a big drink of her tea as if to stop herself from thinking about what she'd just said.

"You were abandoned?" Robbie's eyes widened in surprise and concern at what she'd revealed.

"Yeah, I was left on a bench in the shelter down on the seafront at Scarborough. There was a note with me saying sorry and that my name was Rose" Robbie wasn't quite sure what to say. No wonder she had ended up on the streets. He felt a little humbled that she had offered him such personal information. She was even more vulnerable than he had first suspected.

"Growing up can't have been easy for you" He ventured.

"That's an effing understatement if ever I've heard one" she said. Robbie gave her a sad smile

"How did you end up on the streets?" he continued

Rose looked Robbie straight in the eye. Her confidence in his integrity was strengthening a little. She continued to talk, her voice gruff and low and thick with the local accent.

"Stuff you hear about, about what happened in care homes and foster homes in the 70s and 80s? It's all true."

Robbie frowned at her disclosure. There was always something these days in the news about historical abuse. It wasn't his department at work but he knew the reporting of past crimes involving abuse of children in supposed care had increased recently. While it was a good thing that people would be held to account, it was still shocking to know that so many more cases would never even be known about, with the victims' lives destroyed in one way or another forever. This woman, Rose, was a case in point.

She drank some more tea and then spoke again, her trust strengthening even more. "I was in foster homes since I can remember, it wasn't as bad when I was little. People like small kids, but when I got older no one wanted me and I ended up in homes since I was about 10. After a couple of years I realised that it was better to live on the streets."

Robbie offered her what he hoped was a sympathetic smile "Have you always been in Scarborough? In the area?"

"I went to Leeds for a while, but it's quieter here. Safer. Well, as far as it goes. I know it round here, I know where I can find food and places to kip"

Robbie took a drink of his tea. He looked at the bruising on Rose's face. The black eye was fresh but he could see a whole palette of colours probably from other assaults that had been fairly recent from his guess.

"Who was that man, the one who was in the car just now?" Robbie asked. Rose looked down into her mug of tea.

Robbie waited for her answer but it didn't come so he continued to speak

"I saw what he did to you, and I saw you get into the same car in Scarborough" He looked at Rose and his voice was gentle but firm. Years of having to interrogate perpetrators and victims had given him a knack to his interviewing technique that seemed to make people open up. He hoped it would work with Rose. He continued, his voice quieter now

"Did he do that to your face?"

"Why do you care?, what is it to you anyway? It's not like you'd give a toss if you know or don't know anything about me" She glared at him, distrust welling up again in her face.

Robbie looked at her, holding his gaze firmly but with an empathy that Rose couldn't ignore. He nodded as he continued to speak.

"You're right, I don't know anything about you or what you've been through. But from what I can see and what you've told me I can be sure that things have obviously been bad for you." He let her take in what he had said before continuing. He sensed he needed to gather back her trust again.

"There are places that can help, people that can help you. I can put you in touch with local support network. There are things we can do to help"

"What do you mean we?" Rose frowned at him Robbie saw the distrust surge again and he inwardly cursed himself for his slip up. But he felt he was getting somewhere and he was hopeful he might be able to help her.

"You're a pig? You going to shop me in?" Rose frowned and, on her face, Robbie saw the warning signs that signaled that her suspicion of him had returned fully now and that she might just run out of the café there and then.

"Yes, I am a pig. Actually, I'm a DI, so a big pig. And shop you in? What for? Being a victim? Believe it or not some of us do want to help" Robbie looked at Rose and eventually he saw her panic and distrust recede. She drank some more tea, looking at him all the time. He was patient and eventually she spoke again, her trust in him restored.

"He's knocked me about but he brings me drugs. I pay for it with sex. So there you go. I'm a pathetic druggie who shags for cash because I'm not strong enough to kick the habit."

"It's not an easy thing to do, come off drugs without help. I don't know you, but I think you must be pretty strong to have to cope with living on the streets. There are places that can help you know. There's always support available, and I know it must be difficult to trust people given your history, but there are good people out there."

"Few and far between"

"Well, maybe, but they are there" Robbie said and as Rose looked back at him he felt there was something about her that he couldn't quite place, something that he couldn't quite fathom. His attention went again to the bruising on her eye.

"Listen, that man in the car earlier, I saw what he did. He ought to be held to account. None of this is your fault. Whatever the circumstance he shouldn't be assaulting you, be it physically or sexually, because that's what it is." Robbie's voice was calm but firm and he looked Rose straight in the eye.

Rose looked back at the man sitting opposite her. She'd said to him the last time they'd met that he had a kind face and she thought the same again now. She knew what he said was true, hearing it from someone in his position, on the other side of the law, emboldened her a little. Things suddenly seemed very clear cut. But then as if on cue, the pull of addiction tore at her body and mind. She was getting close to wanting another hit. She maybe had another couple of hours before the physical and mental pain would start again and she would either find the man again to feed it or bunk down in a doorway. Then she looked at Robbie again. Here was an outstretched hand, so it seemed. She shivered, feeling the first tremor of withdrawal take its toll. Robbie could see what was going on. There wasn't much else he could do.

"I'm going to give you my number and if you have any trouble at the refuge in Scarborough, get them to give me a call and I'll speak to them" He wrote his number on a paper serviette and pushed it towards Rose.

"Please, just think about it eh?"

"Why are you doing this?" Rose asked, her face set into a frown and a mixture of emotions at the surface of her mind.

"Because I don't like to see people doing bad things to others and getting away with it" Robbie replied with the same calm and steady authority as before.

Rose reached out across the table and grasped the serviette and tucked it away into her clothes.

Robbie smiled cautiously at her. "Let's finish this tea off shall we?" and he poured them another cup each.


	10. Chapter 10 The Gathering Storm

On the other side of the town, out in the narrow street in front of the spa, Laura pulled her jacket around her against the wind. The weather was turning unexpectedly into what seemed like an early autumnal storm. There was still a little bit of sun but the clouds were starting to win out and, as she made her way along the cobbles, Laura found herself in cold dark shadows.

She walked quickly, dodging the tourists, her eyes alert on the crowds of people ahead, trying not to lose sight of who she was following. Her thoughts turned to fate. Perhaps she had been given the chance to correct a wrong, a wrong that wasn't even of her making or at least change someone else's fate. She followed at a safe distance behind who she had seen come out of the coffee shop. Furtively, avoiding detection, on occasion, she had to stop and pretend to be looking into shop windows. _This is ridiculous_ she thought to herself. _Who am I hiding from here, if not myself?_ She frowned at the realisation _If I'm doing this, I'm doing it._

Following the footsteps of her quarry she climbed the steep steps that lead up to St Mary's Church. In the open grassy plains of the graveyard the wind tore at her face and hair. She was exposed, there were no crowds to hide amongst here save for the seagulls and the ghosts of people long gone. There was no more hiding now. Her heart was racing from the climb and the extra adrenaline of the situation. She took a deep breath as she went up to the bench on the edge of the cliff and the figures that sat there. If fate had dished out a set of parameters and events, she would do her best with them and try and change fate not for herself, but for someone else.


	11. Chapter 11 Memento Mori

A few drops of rain were starting to fall as Robbie made his way back over the bridge towards the spa to meet Laura. He hoped she was going to be feeling better after her massage. As he rounded the street to where the spa was located, he saw her in the distance, on the narrow crowded street.

He could see already that she looked better than she had done earlier. She wasn't smiling, but she'd lost the deep frown she often had when she was distressed. She looked ahead into the busy street and Robbie raised up his hand to get her attention. As she caught sight of him, her face broke into a smile and she waved back. Robbie grinned back, she was certainly much happier and as they got closer to each other he could see she looked a lot more relaxed in her body.

"Hello" he said as they met "You look a bit better now, eh? Did you enjoy your massage?"

"I do feel better, yes" she said back to him, smiling broadly and taking his hand. She didn't tell him she'd not been for a massage and was very relieved that he'd not actually made it to the spa to try and meet her there. Had that been the case, she'd had an excuse ready. This was her last reluctant deceit to him that had culminated from the situation but after her recent encounter she felt it was a necessary one. Hopefully now, things were set right, or at least she had done everything possible in her power to make them right, to correct the imbalance.

"How are you?" She asked him "Did you enjoy watching the boats?"

Robbie noted that her smile and question had a reassuring dose of the usual cheeky affection along with a raised eyebrow that she reserved just for him and he smiled back at her with a nod as they stood for a moment at the side of the street out of the way of the crowds.

"I did, thank you. I also went for an interesting cup of tea"

"Oh?" Laura raised her eyebrows in curiosity and he told her about his encounter with the homeless woman. Laura listened with intent and as Robbie relayed the facts Laura felt the familiar warmth of emotion that she always had for him when she knew he'd put his inherent kindness into practical action.

"Do you think she'll go? To the refuge?" She asked.

"I don't know. Maybe. I hope so. I just hope I've done all I can" Robbie replied, he looked absently at the busy street, his face troubled as he thought of Rose's predicament.

"You will have done." Laura said reassuringly "You always do, Robbie" And she looked up at him and he saw her face, full of love for him and she squeezed his hand and he heard more words of affection for him, silent ones, through the touch of her hand in his. He gazed back down at her for a few seconds a soft smile reflecting her sentiment back to her.

"How about we go for a look round the shops for a bit." He said "And if you're a good lass, I might even buy you a bag of chips"

Laura chuckled back at him, her hand still in his "Sounds like a good deal to me" she said, her eyes smiling, and they made their way back into the throngs of crowds on the cobbles.

The rain was still trying to fall onto the streets of Whitby as Robbie and Laura picked their way through the narrow lanes of the old town. To the North East of the town a storm was lashing up the waves. An angry dark swathe of rain and sea mist hung over the water. It was advancing towards the harbour but over the town there was still a few breaks of sun in-between the dark clouds that had gathered. The wind was stronger now and scattered the spots of rain into the air as it blustered around the town, indiscriminately blowing litter and debris about and rippling the surface of the Esk.

Robbie and Laura went into the shops that took their interest; a ramshackle antiquarian bookshop with old photos and prints of the town, a potter's workshop, a gallery and numerous jewellery shops selling Whitby jet. Robbie was delighted to see that Laura was fully relaxed again. And she was. She felt much better. Her mind was still a little occupied by the preceding events in the churchyard but she knew she had taken as much control over the situation as possible. Some things she couldn't change, she knew that, but like Robbie telling her about how he had tried to help the homeless woman, she knew she had done the best she could with the situation fate had proffered her. She decided she could put it all behind her, Robbie need never know and perhaps she could turn the page on this old chapter that she'd been forced to re-read.

As they went from shop to shop the weather took another turn for the worse and now big heavy raindrops began to fall with purpose from the darkened sky. Robbie heard distant thunder out to sea and as the drops intensified Laura led them both quickly into a jewellery gallery and workshop that sold new and antique Whitby jet.

In the shop Laura browsed the cabinets that were crammed full of antique Victorian jet jewellery. There were rings, earrings, brooches and numerous necklaces and pendants. Robbie went over to the small workshop area and chatted for a while to the artisan while he worked on a piece of jet. Outside the shop the rain was now pouring down and a strong cold gust of wind blew the door of the shop closed with a loud shaking bang that made everyone in the shop jump a little. Fastening up his jacket against the draught Robbie went over to Laura. She was looking into one of the cabinets.

"Anything take your fancy?" He said, taking her hand as he went up behind her. She squeezed his hand back, still looking into the glass case.

"There's some beautiful things in here" she said softly.

"Look at that ring" Laura pointed to a jet ring in the middle of the shelf she was looking at. Robbie took a closer look. It was a beautiful piece and quite unique. It looked like a solid continuous band of jet but on closer inspection Robbie could see the jet was set into a gold channel that made up the inside of the ring. The outer band of jet was polished and flawless in its blackness. Inlaid into the jet were tiny little pearl and mother-of-pearl flowers. As Robbie looked closer, he was surprised to see a tiny skull amongst the flowers.

"Is that what I think it is?" He said, glancing at Laura who was studying the ring with an intense wonder on her face.

"Yes" she said, not taking her eyes off the ring. "It's Victorian, a _memento mori_ ring"

"Latin, I suppose? And we're not even in bloody Oxford. A memento of what?" asked Robbie

"Actually, a reminder of death; either of one's own mortality or a mourning ring for a loved one, hence the skull. Morbid and very beautiful"

"And perfect for a pathologist." Robbie whispered in her ear

"I suppose so" she said with a soft laugh, still gazing at the ring. "It's quite something, isn't it? The little pearl flowers inlaid into the jet are just exquisite" She paused again, lost in admiration before continuing. "Look how the mother-of-pearl adds a subtle colour to it all. And the jet is such a solid black."

Robbie watched her study the ring. He loved to see her enthralled, see her passion come out for things other than work. While they had been in New Zealand and away from the station and the lab he'd witnessed more of this side of her and it had helped him come to terms with his own retirement, more so that it would be spent with her. It was definitely time to start pulling back from work. He knew that now and it made him feel bad about how he'd behaved before their trip to New Zealand.

The shop assistant looked over from behind the antique polished wooden countertop of the shop and invited Laura to try the ring. Laura started to say no but Robbie said yes, they would like to take a closer look, and the girl came over and opened the cabinet and Laura tried the ring on.

It was a perfect fit and she was quite taken by it. The girl left them to study the ring and went back to her business behind the counter.

"It's lovely" said Robbie "And it fits. Do you like it?"

"It is quite stunning" said Laura. "I've never seen anything quite like it. I suppose they don't really make them like this anymore." She admired the ring and turned it round and round on her finger, examining it in detail. Robbie looked at the skull amongst the pretty flowers and an odd chill caught him briefly and the door of the little shop blew open and slammed shut again in the wind.

"I'll buy it you" Robbie whispered close to Laura's ear, gently squeezing her arm to empahsise his offer.

"No, Robbie, it's a lot of money, probably overpriced despite its beauty" she said quietly so that the shop assistant wouldn't hear

"I don't care. I can see you love it. Let me treat you." He murmured with a low soft voice in her ear

"No, Robbie, thank you though. It's too much, come on, let's go." Laura was taken by the ring but it was a lot of money for just a random purchase. She loved how Robbie wanted her to have it however, but even so, it was too expensive for an impulse buy.

"Come on" she said. "Let's go and get something to eat"

"Let me buy it you" Robbie said again. He really wanted to treat her and he had seen how taken she was with the ring.

"No, Robbie, it's a lot of money" Laura whispered back to him. "Let me a least think about it. If we come back into Whitby before we leave and it's still here maybe then. Let's leave it to fate, but thank you" and she squeezed his hand.

Robbie shook his head with a smile "Alright, whatever you say" He knew it was no use arguing with her. So he thanked the girl behind the counter who carefully put the ring back into the cabinet, the tiny little skull staring outwards through the glass case, its black empty eyes watching Robbie and Laura as they left the shop for the cobbled street.

The downpour of rain had slowed and almost stopped by the time they had made their way back from where they'd come from and towards the fish and chip restaurant. The cobbles shone with the rain and the sun suddenly burst through the clouds and bathed the town in a golden bright light. It was short lived however, and by the time they had reached the restaurant the sky was darkening again as the clouds gathered and the wind funneled up the Esk.

Robbie and Laura went into the fish restaurant and found it packed full. A waitress told them they could book a table but there would be at least an hour's wait.

"Let's reserve a table, Robbie, we can have a walk down to the pier, we've not been there yet." Laura turned to Robbie.

"In this weather?" He said with a frown

"Oh come on" Laura chided "it's a bit of wind and rain, where's your sense of adventure?!"

"In the pub!"

Laura laughed "Fair enough, but we've got enough time for a quick stroll _and_ a drink if we're going to kill a bit of time"

"Go on then" said Robbie. "Let's blow away the cobwebs for a bit. Although, can you hang on a minute, I'm just going to nip and get a paper. I won't be a sec." and he winked at Laura and headed off in the direction from where they just been and passed a newsagent a few minutes before.

Laura booked the table and then went back out onto the road. The wind whipped her hair over her face. She pulled her jacket round her and put her bag across her body to secure it from the strong gusts that kept blowing. She looked out to sea. The waves were high and visible from a long distance and she gazed for a while at the horizon and thought again about fate and how odd things were sometimes. How could two very different parts of her life have come to pass like ships in the night, right here?

After a few minutes she looked at her watch. Robbie had been a while, at least ten minutes. She looked out to sea again and 5 more minutes passed. There was no sign of him and she was just starting to feel an odd spike of anxiety, like the week before when he'd been cut off on the phone when she'd called him from London. The wind whipped around her and sense of panic rose in her like she'd not ever felt before; a sense of dread that chilled her right to her heart.

Then, all of a sudden, he was there, on the pavement with a smile on his face as he walked towards her. The feeling of dread evaporated. She smiled and half frowned at him, the feeling of panic forgotten.

"Where did you get to!?" She said "You've been ages!"

"Never you mind"

"And where's the paper?"

"Ah…erm"

Laura suddenly put two and two together.

"You've been back to the jet shop, haven't you?" She said with a half indignant smirk mixed with an affection she couldn't hide. She'd loved the ring but didn't want Robbie to spend his money on it, yet she was touched that he'd been back to the shop and obviously made a purchase. It suddenly became more important to her that he had wanted to buy it for her, more important than the actual ring itself.

"Mind your beeswax, Hobson." He said with a wink and offered her his arm "Come on, let's have a stroll down to the pier, we can have a look at those big waves for a bit."

It was raining and windy as they reached the harbour. The waves crashed into the walls of the pier, occasionally drenching the walkway with fizzing briny sheets of seawater and spray. There was a fresh scent of the sea and ozone in the air. They walked a little way along the pier before slowing to a stop. Robbie looked out to sea as he pulled Laura into an embrace. Her hands went around his back while his went under her jacket where he caressed her, sneaking an opportunity to warm his hands on her body.

"So, when do I get my ring?" She asked, looking up at him as he gazed out at the stormy horizon.

"I don't know what you're referring to" He said, a slight smirk on his lips, still looking out to sea.

"Robbie!" Laura gently slapped his back with her hand in protest at his tease.

He laughed. "Later. Maybe, if you behave yourself. Come here, Canny Lass." And he pulled her closer and hugged her tight, sheltering her from the wind and salt spray that was buffeting in from the sea.

"Give us a kiss and see if you can't warm my cockles in this bloody weather" he said, gazing down at her. And smiling, Laura reached her head up to meet his as he bent forward to kiss her, his hands softly caressing her back as he did so. In his front jeans pocket Laura could feel a small rounded square box, the fruits of his clandestine purchase, pushing against her as they hugged.

"Mm, I can feel where you put the ring" She said, with a mischievous smile and her fingers ventured down his back and she toyed with his belt as she flirted with him.

"How do you know that's a ring, eh?"

"feels too big to be anything else" she said with a smirk

"You cheeky little so and so, you could do a lot of damage to a man's pride saying hurtful things like that" He said with a wink and a smile.

She laughed back and he gazed down at her, feeling her close in his arms, before kissing her again. Laura relished the feel of their bodies together, warm in contrast to the chilly rain flecked air around them. She never tired of the thrill of being in his embrace. For so long she had yearned for this, this pure feeling of love she had in her heart. It had been there, waiting patiently, and now it had been released it had grown unbounded for him. She sighed and tilted her head up to the sky, despite the bad weather and despite the stress earlier and the night before, she felt elated.

A distant rumble of thunder sounded from out at sea and Laura looked past Robbie to the church on the cliff and the abbey. Then her gaze went to the pier from the direction of where they'd come from. Despite the poor weather there were a few people walking and strolling like she and Robbie were doing, joggers, dog walkers, hikers, a family . . .

"Listen, there's something I want to say. . ." Robbie started to speak with a shy smile as he looked down at her. His smile soon turned to confusion and concern. Laura's face was transformed. Wind blushed rosy cheeks had been replaced with a stricken look of dread. She was deathly pale.

"Laura? What's wrong?"

Robbie turned to see what had made Laura's face dissolve into an ashen white.

At first, he saw nothing out of the ordinary, just holiday makers and people; a man and woman running, a family of a man, a woman and a little boy, a woman with her dog. Robbie started to turn back to Laura to ask her again what was wrong, if she perhaps felt ill, when something made him look more closely at the family. At the man. Robbie frowned. He looked at Laura again, she was looking at the family. As they got closer, Robbie, with a peculiar sense of dread now in his own mind, recognised the man's face. An odd foreboding gripped at him. He wasn't sure how he knew, or why, but he was certain that it was seeing the man that had drained the colour from Laura's face.

Robbie watched, almost frozen to the spot as the man, woman and child came even closer. Robbie didn't recognise the woman or the little boy, but one thing was certain. He knew who the man was. Without a doubt in his mind.

It was the man who Robbie had seen assaulting Rose.


	12. Chapter 12 Instinct

On the wind buffeted promenade, the rain was starting to thicken and fall from heavy pewter coloured clouds. The tide was high and the waves crashed and boiled over the sides of the pier. Out to sea, the thunder boomed once more, shearing open the atmosphere but neither Robbie nor Laura registered it. Neither did either of them feel the sting of the rain or the whipping of the wind as the storm started to roll in.

Laura felt physically sick. Not only did it seem that the past and present were about to collide but more the dreadful feeling, in the pit of her stomach, came from seeing this man again.

_Rex_.

She forced herself to say his name in her mind, as if somehow it would serve as a talisman against him, that by acknowledging his presence would somehow give her power.

It didn't work.

The feelings and emotions welled up, flooding her senses with panic and she knew now that it was inevitable that soon Robbie would have to know about it all. Laura looked at the woman at Rex Winterson's side. Her name was Chrissy. Laura knew that now. She'd spoken to her earlier in the churchyard.

_My name is Laura. A long time ago, I knew your husband. _

Laura's panic deepened further when she saw how distraught the young woman looked. She had hoped she had helped the woman, but now she was not so sure, perhaps she, feared, she had made things worse. As they made their way closer, Laura saw that Chrissy was almost rigid with fear.

_Did Rex know they had met?_ Laura panicked as she saw that Chrissy was grappling with the little boy, Henry, who seemed to have picked up on the stress the situation was having on his mother.

Robbie, rain stinging his eyes and face, and still holding Laura in his arms from their earlier embrace, watched as the man, woman and child approached ever nearer until the man seemed to dictate that they stop in front of them. He felt Laura tense in his arms and then she pulled away, and Robbie, despite a rising feeling of foreboding, and against his better judgement, let her go from his grasp.

"Well, well well. Laura Hobson" The man looked at Laura with a penetrating and almost threatening gaze.

_I was right_ thought Robbie _they do know each other _and he felt a flush of panic at the confirmation.

"I presume it is still Hobson, I mean, it has to be, surely?" His tone was insinuating, insulting, and turning his attention from Laura, he shot a sneering look at Robbie.

Robbie glanced at Laura and was alarmed to see how stricken she looked. Swallowing hard, as if trying to keep his bewilderment in check, Robbie looked back to the man, confused but instantly sensing that he couldn't let any manner of guard down, for Laura's sake.

Robbie stared hard at the man. He'd seen him from afar, earlier, but now he could take a closer assessment. He was well spoken, public school perhaps, well dressed with manicured nails and perfectly groomed hair. He was what Robbie called an _Oxford Type_ but not in a positive sense. There was, by default of such a type, an inherent air of arrogance around him. This became more apparent as the situation unfolded.

"Come on, Laura, you don't look very pleased to see me; granted it's been a while, a long while, but I thought I'd get more of a welcome than just silence after all these years?" The arrogant sneering smirk prevailed as he spoke, watching Laura's reaction.

Robbie frowned and glanced down to Laura again, she looked even paler than before. He was still confused. Knowing what he did about the man from Rose was enough in itself, but to now discover that somehow, unexplainably, he had some business with Laura, opened up a well of uncertainty and confusion. Whatever the circumstance was, Laura's reaction signaled that something was wrong and Robbie needed to make that clear to her: that whatever was going on, he had her back.

"Listen" Robbie now glared back at the man, his voice stern and direct, "I don't know who you are or what your problem is. . ."

The man continued to stare indolently at Robbie, with no reaction to his words. And then, a smile flickered across his face; it was a triumphant smile and Robbie sensed that there was something behind it. He was right. The smile turned into a half sneer as he cut across what Robbie was saying.

"Why don't you introduce us Laura?" Now his attention had returned to Laura. She stared back at him, eyes bright with fear. Robbie saw that the man seemed to feed from it. His sneer broadened as he continued to speak.

"No? well that makes sense I suppose, given how you behaved. I'm surprised at you, Laura, he's not your type at all." He gestured to Robbie.

"Very town to your gown. I thought you'd given all that up after you shagged your way around the local village boys back home. Then of course, you had all your little adventures in Oxford town"

Robbie looked at Laura, she was close to tears.

"Why are you doing this, Rex?" Laura finally spoke. Her voice was low. "I did nothing to you, you know that"

_Rex_. The name wasn't familiar to Robbie. Laura had told him many things about her past, including details of old relationships but he'd never heard her talk of a Rex before. This set off a warning claxon in his head. He looked again at the man. He could see that around the man's nostrils the skin was inflamed and shining red. It very quickly became apparent that not only had this man supplied drugs to Rose but that he had an obvious habit himself.

"In case you're wondering, Laura and I know each other, from way back" The man, Rex, said to Robbie.

Robbie glared back at him, his face and composure dropping at his words. The man laughed. A dry condescending sound, confident in its arrogance of the discomfort and shock on Robbie's face. Robbie looked at Laura. He thought he could see her trembling slightly, She wouldn't meet his eyes and he knew then that somehow this man had some awful connection to her. She seemed paralysed with fear, and Robbie wasn't sure why she couldn't, or wouldn't meet his eyes.

"I was Laura's first love. I got in there first I suppose you could say."

He laughed as he saw Robbie's face slip further at what he'd disclosed.

"How very interesting to see she's settled for an old wreck like you. Now, my guess is you have something on offer, although, you don't look or sound like the sort to have money. Good for you though, I suppose, at your age. Although, she's not exactly as fresh as a daisy, after all, everyone knows she's like an old oxford bike, ridden by all and sundry. I expect half of Oxford's had a go on her at some point."

"Right, that's enough." Robbie, furious now, stepped forward towards the man.

It was a calculated risk, but Robbie was sure he could arrest him just on the evidence that Rose had presented him with earlier in the day. It could all turn messy very quickly but Robbie decided to chance that the man was in possession of class A drugs at the very least. Robbie didn't want to admit to himself that main thing driving him was anger. He was glad there was at least a vaguely legitimate reason behind his motive other than just pure rage at what this stranger had said about Laura and the effect it had had on her. Robbie felt his fists ball up and tighten, ready for some sort of confrontation, He took a step towards the man.

"I don't know who you are" He growled, "Or what your business is with us, or Laura, and you know what? I don't really care. But I've seen you with that homeless woman. I've spoken to her. I know what you do. I could arrest you right now"

"Oh, how gallant of you. A citizen's arrest on the words of a whore. But you won't arrest me"

"Just bloody try me" Robbie's voice, forceful now and gruff had enough gravitas behind it to cause the slightest of wariness on Rex's part. With that and with seasoned experience, Robbie made a move towards Rex with the authority that had earlier parted the tourists on the pavement when he'd helped Rose.

Despite his initial confidence in gauging the situation, as he stepped forward, Robbie quickly sensed that it wasn't going to be enough against the man in front of him. Being high on drugs gave confidence to actions and Robbie's instincts told him it was too late to retreat and almost on cue with his sudden crystal clear perception of the situation, and before he had time to react, the man took a wide swinging punch at Robbie's right eye.

There was a sickening crack of splitting skin and although older than Laura, the man was younger than Robbie and, full of anger and belligerence, had succeeded in forcing all his rage into the punch.

Robbie staggered backwards, reeling and off balance he felt the sting of broken skin and the odd lingering pause of nothingness that comes before the searing heat of pain.

It was Laura's turn now to feel confused as she rushed to Robbie as he toppled backwards She wasn't sure how Robbie seemed to know Rex, or that inconceivably there was a connection between Rex and the homeless woman that Robbie had spoken to.

She wanted to run at Rex, return what he'd exerted onto Robbie but she instead crouched down at Robbie's side. At least Rex hadn't knocked him out as Laura had feared.

As he tried to make sense of the events, Robbie felt Laura's hands on him, checking his injuries briefly before getting to her feet again. Through the ringing in his ears he realised she was shouting at the man.

"You!" She screamed at Rex "I should have told everyone about you when I had the chance!"

Robbie was half sitting on the concrete, clutching at his face, dazed and feeling the rip of pain in the bone under his face and the burning sensation of torn skin around his eye. His own head was swimming, blurring his vision but not enough for him to see tears of rage and upset gush up into Laura's eyes and tip over her face mixing with the rain that was now falling in big heavy drops.

"You think you can get away with it, all these years, but I'm not going to let you do it anymore!" Laura shouted.

"You're poison and you poison everything and everyone that comes near you. I'm not going to let you do it anymore, _we're_ not going to let you do it anymore" and Laura's focus suddenly changed with her words, she looked around, wildly, up the pier, in the direction of the town.

Robbie, through his pain, was alarmed at what he saw. He was not a stranger by any means to seeing Laura angry but he had never seen her angry and upset like this. The look that most concerned him, however, was the fear on her face, and that this outburst of anger at the man had somehow been borne from that fear and then suddenly, for whatever reason, she was fighting it.

Robbie, his eye running with blood was suddenly aware that the heavens had opened. Heavy drenching cold rain drummed down from the sky aided by a strong wind and as Laura looked wildly around her, she took a second to look at Robbie and he saw her eyes, wide and fearful and seemingly searching for something, or someone.

As the rain beat down, stinging his face and turning the blood running crimson from his eye into a pink rivulet over his face and down his neck, Robbie was aware that members of the public, one of the joggers and others, had started to approach the scene. They had witnessed it all and tentatively had come towards the epicenter of the drama, some to see what was unfolding and others with a genuine interest to help what was clearly becoming a volatile situation.

Robbie winced and tentatively touched near his eye with the tips of his fingers. Time seemed to slow and he could tell he was foggy from the blow. He looked up. Rex was almost pulsing with what Robbie could see was a drug rush high, poised as if to see what Robbie would do next even though he was on his knees on the ground.

Robbie wasn't exactly sure himself what to do next. He needed to make sure Rex was held for account, firstly for assaulting rose but also for nearly knocking him out. His head still ringing he got to his feet. He was aware that Laura was still near him but she seemed to have refocused on something else, she was looking around almost with desperation, up the pier, seeming searching out something or someone. Suddenly he heard her shout out with a distressed piercing cry that signaled imminent danger.

Still reeling from the punch, Robbie turned to see what Laura was shouting about. The woman and the little boy who had been with the man had walked a little way down the pier and were sitting on top of the white railings. Waves sloshed over the promenade and onto the woman's feet. The little boy was crying in terror.

"Chrissy, NO!" It was Laura, shouting again

Robbie barely had time to acknowledge that Laura seemed to know the woman on the railings before he and everyone else watched in horror as, clutching the little boy in her arms, she rested her feet down on the other side of the railings and then, almost effortlessly, slipped off the side of the pier and down into the roiling sea.

They watched as she hit the choppy water and disappeared under the waves. Without even thinking, Robbie got to his feet and began to run. As he did so he shouted at the bystanders, gesturing towards Rex

"Don't let him go!" He bellowed, and one of the joggers and a dismounted cyclist ran towards Rex from behind and held him, pulling his arms behind his back.

As Robbie ran, he was vaguely aware of voices shouting, but it was overridden by the rush of adrenalin that felt so familiar to him. Years of training and experience joined with his instinct and he didn't need to think about what he had to do next. He heard Laura's voice in the wind, shouting, screaming at him.

He ignored her. He had to.

Laura, rooted in fear and disbelief, watched in horror as she saw Robbie run to the spot where Chrissy had jumped in.

"Robbie No! No! Robbie! Don't Robbie, please! no!" Robbie heard Laura scream again, her cries blown away from him by the wind.

"No. . .! Robbie!" She screamed again as he climbed over the railings and jumped off the pier.

Thoughts and implications tore through Laura's mind as she saw Robbie drop, legs and arms flailing as he plummeted down, hit the surf and disappeared into the water, swallowed by the waves.

_The water's cold _she thought _It's too shallow, he's going to smash his legs, break his back_.

_He's going to die_ she thought

_He's going to die. They're all going to die._


	13. Chapter 13 Going Under

Robbie knew, as soon as he jumped, that he'd taken a risk with the depth and the tide. But he'd seen Tommy dive from that very spot many times. He held his breath, bracing himself as he felt the first cold shock of the water feeling first his legs, and then body, plunge into to the waves. His risk paid off and he felt his legs smash into the water and without knowing how close he'd come, not make contact with the sea floor.

Sucked under the waves he kicked his legs against the pull of the water and managed to buoy himself back up again, despite the swell of the surf, and got his head out of the water. The waves were high and he tried to find a rhythm so that his head didn't sink below the water. He quickly found his bearings and saw he was close to the woman.

The rain stung his eyes and as the salt water burned the split bloody skin around his eye Robbie was relieved beyond belief to see that the woman was clutching the little boy and just about keeping both their heads above the waves. Despite her jumping in, the chill of the water was such a shock that her survival instinct had kicked in. She didn't want to die, it had been a moment of desperation and suddenly she wanted to live, and above all for her child to live.

She screamed and realised Robbie was there to help her as he called to her, reaching her through the churning cold waves. He swam up to her and managed to get hold of her in a rescue grip. With all her might she was gripping the little boy who, in the midst of the drama was rendered silent and terrified, thankfully making him easier to hold onto.

Over the roar of the waves and the howl of the wind Robbie shouted to her not to be afraid and that everything would be ok. He'd heard Laura call her Chrissy so he called her that too, telling her everything would be ok and that she'd soon be taken to safety with her little boy.

He hoped he was right and that a lifeboat might be on its way. Above him on the pier he saw someone throw down a lifesaver. He watched it tumble through the air; it seemed to take an age, all the time he held onto the woman and told her not to worry and that she would be safe. His legs kicked frantically under the water, desperately and only just keeping them all afloat. He struggled hard to keep her above water but somehow managed it and, scrambling in the choppy water managed to grab the life saver and got her to hold onto it. He couldn't risk holding onto it for fear of weighing it down too much. He pulled away from the woman but continued to shout to her that she was ok and that help would come. He heard shouting again from above and hoped that another lifesaver would be thrown down for him. He kicked his legs to try and stay afloat but the waters were cold and he could feel his muscles starting to seize up. _Help must come soon_ he thought. There had been plenty of people see him jump after the woman. Surely help would come soon, for them both.

The waves churned and boiled and the pull of the tide was strong. Robbie felt himself being swept away from the woman and then the pier by the force of the water and the currents. Above him, and now further away with each swell, the walls of the pier seemed like cliffs towering above him, green and dark and unclimbable even if he could reach them. He saw someone throw another life saver down but it was too far from the mark and it landed uselessly too far away from him.

Frantically trying to fight the pull of the waves his mouth filled with the bitter salt water; there was nothing he could do but swallow it once he felt it rushing up his nose and into his throat, feeling his sinuses burn and his nostrils fill. He coughed and retched and gasping, his legs fought against the pull of the current and the sheer power of the waves. As he thrashed his legs in an effort to stay above the surface, he swallowed even more seawater, bitter, salty and full of gritty sand. He fought a rising urge to vomit. He realised he was being pulled under by the forces of the swell and the sheer power of the water. He took a last deep breath, in a vain hope that he'd be able to hold his breath and get back above the waves and to the life saver. As the water engulfed him, pulling him under, a strange stillness took over his mind and of all things, he thought how the gypsy's prophecy mocked him again.

_Now I know for sure it's not true it was never true _he thought.

He held his breath, trying not to focus on how much longer he could do so. He felt that his lungs would burst. Caught in a rip he was pulled down onto the seabed and felt the dash and scrape of ballast rocks and the sandpaper burn of the sands on his body as the currents pulled him every which way. His head rushed in the freezing water. His lungs felt on fire, he knew he couldn't fight the reflex to open his mouth, but he knew it wouldn't be air he would breathe in. . .

_This can't be it_ he thought, _Can it? Is this how it all ends?_

As he felt the sting of the water up his nose and the raging fire in his chest along with the bursting horrendous desperation of wanting to breathe, he saw the gypsy again: what she had said about Tommy had been true, but not what she had said about him_. It was never true_ he thought.

And he thought of his son and daughter, his grandson, and then, Laura.

_I'm sorry Laura_ he thought

_I'm so sorry. I'm Sorry. . . I . . . _

He felt a sensation behind him, a thud and an odd warm feeling on the back of his head as a wave tumbled him again onto the seabed and then. . .

Blackness took over, a seeping black ink across his eyes, like going under an anaesthetic. . .

And his awareness ceased.


	14. Chapter 14 Waiting

Laura Hobson had experienced little personal trauma in her life which was ironic given that she was presented with other people's tragedy every day in her career. She'd had her fair share of family and friend deaths but, even though untimely and incredibly sad, they had been, for the most part, peaceful passings. As for life shattering tragic events, however, she had no point of reference. She was used to arriving at the scene of drama just unfolded, she was used to keeping calm. But that was when she was on the other side of the events. Being on the _other side_ was something she knew nothing about.

As she stood on the pier and watched, helpless, as the lifeboats scrambled to the rescue she wondered if her life was about to change. She'd watched in horror, screaming in an effort to stifle her fear as Robbie had jumped off the pier, only to feel a flood of relief as she saw him rise back through the waves, seemingly unhurt to then swim to the aid of Chrissy and Henry.

At this point Laura's heart was thudding with the drama but also relief that Robbie had surfaced. She had heard people calling for the coastguard, running to the nearby lifeboat station and using mobile phones to call the incident into the rescue services and the police and she could see that the crew at the lifeboat station were seconds away from scrambling a boat to the rescue. She saw the life saver thrown out to Robbie and Chrissy, she saw him helping them so they were safe enough for an imminent rescue. He didn't have a life saver but she saw, with thanks in her heart, that someone was getting another to throw down.

_They're all going to be ok_. She thought.

She saw the lifesaver sail through the air, caught by the wind, land near to Robbie, but then she could see, it was nowhere near enough to him to be of any use. She could see him watching the life saver too, _he must know it's no good_ she thought, a sob rising in her throat. The swell of the waves lurched over him again, engulfing him, wrenching him under, whipping him even further away from the life saver.

It was at this point Laura Hobson realised that things were not going to be ok

She could see Robbie struggling just beneath the waves his head disappearing under the churning surface before rising again only to vanish under the crash of another wave. This seemed to repeat numerous times, he seemed caught in some nightmarish cycle and all Laura could do was watch it happen, completely helpless and full of fear at what she was seeing.

_Just stay above the water_ she pleaded, _Please Robbie, please . . ._

But Laura's pleas evaporated, they had no substance, lost in the wind and the rain, staunched by the thunder and at the mercy of the power of the elements; and she saw again, Robbie pulled under the waves for another time. But this time he didn't come back up.

Laura watched the waves continued their relentless motion over the spot where Robbie had vanished. It seemed like an age to Laura, but only seconds later a lifeboat sped into view and motored towards Chrissy and Henry, who were clutching onto each other, tossed up and down but above the waves with the aid of the lifesaver that Robbie had helped them with. Laura watched the lifeboat crew lift them both safely into the boat.

She was relieved but her focus was for Robbie again. Another lifetime seemed to pass for Laura, all the time she looked for Robbie, desperate to see him rise up again out of the water. But he was nowhere to be seen. Seconds later, another lifeboat whipped over the surf, its belly banging and smacking against the waves. It came to a stop where Robbie had disappeared beneath the surface, meanwhile the other boat headed at speed back inshore.

Still Robbie was nowhere to be seen.

The wind howled and thunder ripped open the sky again, seconds after a flash of sheet lightning illuminated the dark clouds with an almost blinding light. As deep crack and boom of the thunder passed and quietened, Laura realised she was screaming. She only stopped when she felt someone come up to her and put a blanket around her. It was a woman, dressed in a blue uniform and Laura realised, with an odd abstract feeling, that the person was a police officer. There was a man with her, dressed in bright orange rescue gear with a radio that crackled and shouted.

Laura was suddenly, blisteringly aware that she was on the _other side_ of the line. She thought of all the times she'd attended a scene. The people nearby at such times were more often than not close relatives. She realised with a chill in her stomach that she was now in that role. The policewoman told Laura her name but it didn't register. The man in orange now faced her and put his hand on her arm in an effort to recover her attention.

Laura looked up at the man as she felt the touch of his hand on her arm

"What's his name, love?" He asked, clearly and quickly but with a firm and genuine gentleness that Laura recognised had been honed from dealing many times with the situation they both found themselves in.

"It's Robert, Robbie, Robbie Lewis" She heard herself babbling but it was enough for the rescuer to radio out to the boat.

"Victims name is Robbie, over"

The radio crackled back but Laura couldn't hear what was said

_Victim_ she thought

"And what's your name, love?"

"Laura"

"Are you his wife?" He asked again with kindness but a strong clarity that was essential at such moments

"No, partner"

I may as well be his wife she thought and, in her head, up flashed all the ranting she'd done to Robbie about the whole institution of marriage. But also, all the times she'd told him how much he meant to him, how she'd always be there for him and all the times she'd brought him to an emotional edge with her words of devotion.

It occurred to her that she might not be allowed to know what was going on with Robbie because she wasn't his wife. In the eyes of the law she was nothing to Robbie. It was all so ridiculous, laughable.

"Alright love, we'll do our best, we're here quick, and that's a good thing, you wait w' Angie, ok love?" The man in the orange gear spoke again to Laura, looking directly at her to try and impart some reassurance to her.

It was all Laura could do just to nod at the rescue coordinator. He stood up and said something to the policewoman that Laura didn't catch and then jogged off, speaking into his radio as he went.

"We can go and sit in one of the cars, get out of the rain" the policewoman said. She could see the anguish on Laura's face, she was worried that she was cold and in shock.

"No" Laura said, desperately "I need to stay, I need to see"

"They'll do their best. It better that we go to the station or to a car, we'll know more from there" and the woman smiled sympathetically at Laura. The young PC had only been on the force a few years but she had been to several sea rescues where the victims were located just inshore. It wasn't an easy part of the job and she knew it was best to let the crews do what they could and try to keep the victims' families away from any unfolding drama. She had hoped to take this woman away from the view of any impending rescue. Or, just as likely, a recovery of the body. Watching a loved one pulled drowned from the waves was a nightmare before the realised reality of death that she preferred to try and keep the relatives from seeing. She had no idea if this casualty would survive or not.

"I'll need to take some details from you" she started to say but Laura was too intent looking out to sea to respond.

_If he's dead_. She thought. _If he's dead_.

He mind cruelly started to supply her with the science she knew of what happened at the moment of death by drowning. She'd had plenty of drowning victims on her slab over her career. The various stages of the effects of drowning floated hideously through her mind. _Hypercapnia. _Robbie would be desperate to breathe. The carbon dioxide would be building in his blood, making him want to open his mouth and breathe even though he would be aware he was under the water.

Suddenly amongst the roiling waves a shape appeared, rising from the water like the back of a whale, yet it seemed out of place in the surf.

It was Robbie.

Laura could see he wasn't moving and he was floating face down in the waves. Within just a few seconds the rescue team hauled him out of the sea and into the boat.

And then she couldn't see anything other than the rescuers on the lifeboat crouching over and obscuring any view

"What's going on? Can you radio the boat? I need to know" Laura pleaded desperately, to the WPC, her eyes filling with tears of anguish.

"As soon as they can tell us anything they will, Laura." WPC Angie Oakham was cautious about what she said. They had got the man out of the water quickly which was a good thing but it could also be irrelevant to the state he was in. She steeled herself for further imminent developments.

An age seemed to pass and never had Laura felt time go so slow. A sickening leaden feeling in the pit of her stomach reminded her constantly of how black and white the situation was. Was he dead? Was Robbie dead? Or was he still alive and breathing? Was he hanging on to life by a thread? How long had he been without oxygen in his blood? The questions flooded her with yet another sickening wave of dread.

Despite all her experiences of working with the Oxfordshire police her knowledge of similar situations gave her no help or assurance.

_I won't lose him._ She repeated to herself in her head, over and over.

Another lifetime seemed to pass and still the rescuers bent over in the boat, balancing with expertise it's motion in the choppy conditions. The rain was beginning to slow and the storm was passing over. Suddenly one of the lifeboat crew sprang to the front of the boat and the craft motored into life. It turned in the water and headed back in the direction it had come.

Laura looked at Angie, searching for her reaction to the boat's actions. The young PC was privately assured that the boats sudden departure meant that the victim was alive.

In what condition however, remained to be seen.


	15. Chapter 15 Keeping Calm

In the thick stormy air, full of Ozone and recent rain, Laura tried to take a deep breath, to stay calm. She had lost sight of the lifeboat but saw that an ambulance waited on the road close to the pier.

Suddenly, as if by magic, the rescue coordinator was there in front of her, like a bright orange beacon in the grey damp air of the passing storm.

"He's going be alright, love."

Laura felt the relief hit her, feeling her knees weaken and then strengthen as she took on the full statement and what it meant.

"He's taken a knock to the head by the looks of it, maybe from some driftwood, there's a lot of flotsam about today. We reckon he was out for a minute or so, but he came round quickly once we got him in the boat, he remembers it all. In my experience that's a very good thing. There's a good chance that there will be minimal or little concussion."

Laura nodded in agreement, relieved at every word that she was hearing, suddenly pulling herself together, wiping her eyes with her fingers.

"He's not inhaled any water, probably swallowed a fair bit. He was asking for you. If you want to come with me I'll take you to him. He's going to be fine but a paramedic's with him now just to give him a check over."

Laura felt her knees weaken again as they walked quickly along the pier in the direction of the town. They soon reached the ambulance and it was all Laura could do not to run up the steps and to Robbie.

"Robbie. . ." Laura was almost choking with tears as she went to him.

"I'm Ok, love" Robbie seeked to reassure her. She looked dreadful, pale and cold, and despite how he felt, Robbie felt awful, seeing clearly that the worry on her face had been generated because of what he had done.

"I'm sorry, love, this wasn't what I had in mind when I said I might go for a swim" Robbie attempted a smile in an effort to offer Laura some comfort. It didn't seem to have any effect and, sobbing, Laura's hand reached for his and she gripped it with all her might. Robbie's body was shaking slightly. A paramedic had put an emergency blanket and foil over him but still his whole body trembled. Laura was shaking slightly too. She was primed to deal with stress but in situations like this she often went to pieces. Robbie had a knack of being able to take control in high octane levels of stress even those involving himself, but even so, he saw what a state Laura was in and he focused on that to help take his mind off the pain in his ribs and head.

"What about the lass and the little lad?" Robbie asked, he had been told already that they were safe but he thought it would be a good distraction for Laura to tell him

"They've taken them to get checked out at the hospital. They're fine." She said, trying to fight the tightness in her throat while she spoke, wiping her eyes from the sheen of salty tears that continued to spring from her eyes unbidden.

Suddenly she caught her breath, the enormity of the outcome suddenly writ large in her mind. "You saved them, you bloody idiot, you nearly killed yourself. You bloody, bloody fool, Robbie . . . how could you do that. . ."

Laura was now caught between the odd place that lies between crying and laughing. Both emotions vied for first place but neither won through.

"I'm sorry I gave you a scare, love. I couldn't not try and save them, I'm so sorry" said Robbie

Laura looked back at him, shaking her head now, apologising for her emotions. The last thing she wanted to do was to upset him, but the relief she felt was manifesting itself in odd ways.

"it's ok" she whispered, her voice quiet and her tears subsiding "I know you had to do it. I wouldn't have you any other way" And she felt a huge wave of pride and tenderness towards him. She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed it, tears brimming again in her eyes.

The senior paramedic, who had been filling in paperwork returned to perform some more tests on Robbie. He smiled at Laura, and shook her hand, as she introduced herself thanking him at the same time.

"How do you feel, Robbie ?" The Paramedic asked, carefully checking his response for signs of concussion.

"Not too bad" he replied. Through her tears, now starting to slow, Laura smiled to herself, shaking her head slightly. Despite everything he'd just been through she knew he was playing it down. Through a gap in the blanket she could see the bruising on his ribs and chest was a deep raspberry colour, interspersed with a peppering of bright red and black scrape marks. It wasn't serious but it looked very painful.

"I still don't know why I'm still here. . . " Robbie said to the paramedic, his voice hoarse with the trauma of the salt water in his throat, a confused look on his face "Why I didn't drown, it felt like I was under the water for an age"

The paramedic smiled kindly at him "It could be that they got you out of the water just in time, your dive reflex went into action, maybe when you took a blow to the head, or it may have been happening while you were still conscious. It certainly helped you. Of course, there was no small help from the lifeboat crew. Either way, you're a lucky man."

"I am" he said, looking at Laura and grasped her hand tightly, so much so that she was taken aback by the sudden force.

The assistant paramedic who had been busy gathering a tray of sterile equipment came over from the back of the ambulance to tend to the various cuts and broken skin over Robbie's torso. He didn't have a gentle touch and Laura saw Robbie wince several times as he attended to his injuries. Laura smiled sympathetically at Robbie and continued to hold his hand throughout. She was uncharacteristically quiet and Robbie thought once more about how his actions had put her into a nightmarish scenario of watching him almost drown.

After a few minutes of Robbie being further poked and prodded and swabbed by the assistant, a man stepped up into the ambulance. Laura and Robbie turned to look

"I'm Sergeant Cox" He said, his voice, like most of the people who had been involved in the rescue, was thick with the local accent.

"I need to take a few details from you, if that's ok?" He said to Laura.

"If you could do that outside" the assistant paramedic snapped with a frosty look on his face, "I can't move around properly in here with all these extra people."

"I'll be ok" Robbie reassured Laura as she looked at him, concern cutting a deep line between her eyebrows. He smiled at her and this seemed to satisfy her. She nodded at him and squeezed his hand before she followed the Sergeant outside.

From inside the ambulance Robbie could see that the weather had calmed a little, the wind had lessened but on the long horizon out to sea there were still dark clouds and unsettled conditions still waiting to roll in across the water. He took a deep breath. He was beginning to think about the near miss he'd just had with death. He tried not to think about the feeling he had under the water when he was desperate to breathe. He focused on the fact that he'd managed to help the woman and the boy. He felt awful for Laura. To have witnessed it all. He wondered what she was saying to the sergeant. He needed to know how she knew the man and the woman and little boy. His head was beginning to throb with the trauma and with the confusion of it all. Although his cuts and scrapes were cleaned and the split skin above his eye taped up, Robbie was starting to feel a deep painful ache in the whole of his body. He could feel the adrenalin starting to drain from his system and he knew from past experience that he was in for a few days of pain and stiffness. The senior paramedic was making a final assessment of him as Laura came back into the ambulance. She smiled at Robbie, taking his hand again.

"What's the score?" Robbie asked the paramedic, as brightly as he could muster, for Laura's sake.

"Do I need to go the hospital?" Robbie desperately hoped not. Although very thankful to the service, he was starting to feel a bit tired.

"You can go. I'm happy that Doctor Hobson here can take care of you. To be honest by the time we get you to the hospital you may as well be back at your holiday place, you'll get warmer quicker than if we took you over to Scarborough. If you do need to take him to the A&E, Dr Hobson, call me and I'll give them a heads up for you." And he handed Laura his card

"Thanks" said Laura. She was relieved that they could just go back to the cottage to recover. Robbie needed rest and quiet and the sooner the better. She had calmed considerably now. She needed her wits about her to look after Robbie. Her professionalism kicked in and she started to feel herself again. She quizzed the Paramedic about a few things and Robbie was reassured to see that her tears had dried and the despair he'd seen in her eyes had abated and she was getting back to herself. After a few more questions involving medical language and names of pharmaceuticals that Robbie couldn't concentrate on, the Paramedic sanitized his hands and put his hi vis coat on.

"I just have to liaise with the lifeboat crew and the other services" he said, heading to the ambulance exit "if you need anything, Danny will assist." And he motioned to the assistant paramedic who was, with a barely concealed bad temper tapping with irritated speed on a laptop keyboard at the other end of the ambulance.

Smiling Laura placed a hand on Robbie's cheek, soothing the skin near to his eye. His face felt cold and raw with the saltwater and the immersion he'd endured but the state of his skin around his eye was something else. It was cut and bruised and already turning a vicious set of colours.

_Rex._ She thought and she was suddenly angry. Although Sergeant Cox had assured her of his arrest and that he was in custody she didn't want to have to think about him at all, at least not right now.

But Robbie would need to know and he had every right to know everything now.

"Do you know them?" Robbie asked quietly, as if reading her thoughts. "The lass and the boy, and that man?"

"Yes"

"But how? I don't understand, love?" His voice was quiet and hoarse. His throat felt dry and he sipped at the warm drink he'd been given.

Laura looked away, down at the floor. She didn't want this conversation now. Robbie was about to ask her again when Sergeant Cox poked his head round the door of the ambulance.

"Whenever you're ready we've got one of the constables waiting to take you back to your holiday place. He's bringing a car round now for you. I'll need to take full statements from you both at some point. I'll call round to your cottage tomorrow if that's alright with you, Sir?" The young sergeant addressed Robbie.

"There's no need for any of that" said Robbie, waving his hand, baulking at the Sergeant's good manners. During his conversation with Laura the sergeant had noted with interest that Robbie was an esteemed DI.

"Thank you, Sergeant Cox" said Laura "That's fine, we'll be there all day"

"I'll wait outside for you" said the sergeant and stepped back outside

"Come on, let's get you back to the cottage" said Laura, squeezing his hand. "You need to rest and I need to keep an eye on you for signs of concussion, but rest is what you need now"

"We need to talk love, you need to tell me what went on" Robbie pulled gently on Laura's hand "I'm still confused how you know them. You need to tell me, Laura?" He pleaded. He was still worried about Laura's part in the events, still confused with it all and it had spiked his adrenaline again. He was trembling slightly.

"I will" She said quietly. "You must rest, Robbie, please; and I'll tell you when you're feeling a bit better"

Robbie knew she was right. He'd had concussion before and it could be dangerous. He was dead tired yet wired at the same time. He needed time to calm down and despite wanting to know all about the situation he relented knowing that he could trust Laura to tell him everything. What he would hear he wasn't sure about, however. He had a feeling that it was about her past and unlike the stories of his younger days that he'd told her, he had a hunch that wasn't going to be a pleasant story.

A few minutes later, armed with a box of strong painkillers and some spare dressings and his wet clothes in a plastic bag, Robbie and Laura were on their way back to Robin Hoods bay and the cottage.

The car took them away and out of the town leaving the emergency services and police still milling around the area taking witness statements and chatting to curious onlookers. On the pier, WPC Angie Oakham was about to head back to the station to process her notes when a disheveled looking woman dressed in filthy clothes came up to her. She recognised her as one of the homeless people that roamed the area. Usually they kept themselves away from the police, especially those who took drugs, but the woman was different today, her stance resolute and bold.

"Can I help?" Said PC Oakham

"Yes" Said the woman staring intently "My name's Rose. And I want to make a statement"

* * *

**AN:** I've taken lots of "artistic" medical liberties here, along with moving the location of Whitby's lifeboat station. I have no idea of what tests might be needed for someone in Robbie's situation. I'm fairly certain, however, that there's absolutely no way the emergency services would have let him just go without taking him to a hospital. I also know there can be serious complications from such an incident which you will be glad to know Robbie will not encounter in my story. Also, from watching similar events unfold the amount of time taken in such incidents is usually very very long, so "Sequences have been shortened for artistic purposes". Along with this, I felt that a hospital chapter was unnecessary and, more importantly, would take up my precious fluff writing time. Besides, Laura's going to look after Robbie much better than any hospital can ;-D Thanks all for continuing to read – knowing you are reading makes me keep writing, so many thanks to each and every one of you.


	16. Chapter 16 All Through The Night

Once back at the cottage Laura made Robbie get straight into a warm bath. He was glad of it. His wounds were clean but he felt grimy from the saltwater. He had escaped without too many badly open cuts, but his chest and back were splashed with inky bluish-black bruises and blood blisters and he had an impressive set of rashes and scraped skin on his legs from being dashed and dragged on the sea floor.

The warm water in the bath made him feel a bit better and he was glad afterwards to get into some soft clothes and more than happy to take Laura's order to get his aching body into bed. He was thankful that the cottage bed was big and very comfy and not like the budget one they'd had at the B and B. Outside, the storm was raging again and as he settled himself under the covers Robbie could hear the wind and rain lashing the windows of the little cottage. Once she was satisfied he was in bed and resting, Laura went into the kitchen to make them both some toast.

On the kitchen countertop was a piece of paper, folded over. Laura recognised the writing on the front, _Mr and Mrs Hobson_ it said, like the note that had been left with the champagne. Laura cut some bread before popping it into the toaster and then picked up the note. The message inside informed her that the hot tub had been fixed and that it was ready for use and apologies again for it not being serviceable for some of their holiday. Laura raised her eyebrows in weary dismissal. The hot tub was the last thing on her mind at the moment and she suddenly felt angry at the turn of events.

The toaster, making a bright pinging noise, refocused her on the matter in hand and sighing again she buttered the toast and took it on a plate along with a glass of water into the bedroom. Robbie didn't feel hungry but Laura insisted he ate a few mouthfuls so that he could take a dose of painkillers. She didn't much feel like eating either but lead by example and ate her toast and was glad to see Robbie eat all of his. She was relieved to see him doze a little after he had eaten and taken a dose of painkillers and she lay on the bed next to him, their hands clasped together for comfort. She was very worried about Robbie succumbing to concussion. So far he seemed ok but it could strike at any time and she needed to keep a close eye on him. He had swallowed lots of seawater too, so if he felt sick there was no way of knowing if it was due to concussion or because of an upset stomach. She readied herself for a long evening and night.

Robbie slept for an hour and then awoke again, feeling thirsty. His throat was still sore from the salt water and he felt nauseous. Laura gave him some iced water to sip and to both their relief he felt a bit better. He wanted a cup of tea but Laura insisted he drank a mint infusion with honey. He didn't fancy it at all but didn't want to refuse and cause her upset so he did as he was told and to his surprise it helped soothe his raw throat and took away some of the salty acidic taste from the back of his throat.

As late afternoon turned into evening the rain cleared for a while and a rare interval of sunlight flooded the cottage with golden light and warmth through the windows and the skylights. It brightened the room for a while but not for long. The clouds thickened again and they both heard distant thunder out to sea. Robbie dozed and when he awoke again it was time for another painkiller and Laura made some more toast and this time she also made some scrambled egg and tea for them both.

"How are you feeling?" She said, squeezing his hand as she lay next to him after they'd eaten

"Yeah, I'm ok love" he replied with an attempt at a smile, sipping at some water as he took his painkillers.

"You sure?" She knew he wasn't feeling ok at all.

"Actually, I do feel a bit cold" he admitted with a resigned smile and she tucked the covers round him and pulled him close, careful not to catch the bruising on his ribs. She checked his forehead with the back of her hand for a temperature and then with a thermometer she kept in her sponge bag. His temperature was normal; he didn't feel hot to touch and she knew it was sheer exhaustion in his body making him feel cold. Even so, after another ten minutes he was still shivering. The underfloor heating was on in the cottage but the rain and the wind made things feel cold and gloomy.

"Having some food in you will help but I'll get the blanket from the car" she said, starting to feel a little concerned, despite being confident that he wasn't in any danger.

She went to the boot of the car and retrieved a blanket they kept there for emergencies. It was thick lamb's wool of blues and green woven into tartan. She took it back into the cottage and wrapped it around Robbie. The blanket was a comfort to him but still he shivered beneath it.

"Any better?" she asked, taking his hand in hers

"A bit. Well actually, if I'm being honest, it still feels like I'm in the bloody water"

"Right that's it. I'm lighting the fire"

"Do you think you can?" Robbie asked, his eyebrows raised. Laura had a poor track record when it came to lighting fires and stoves.

"Yes." She said with determination. She wasn't sure if she actually could do it but at the very least she thought it might be a bit of a distraction for Robbie, something to help him focus on other than feeling cold and replaying the events from earlier in the day.

From the wicker basket next to the fireplace Laura piled kindling over some fire lighters in the grate of the stove. Robbie watched on and gave her instructions from the bed and Laura's plan worked because after a while he started to feel a bit warmer. He smiled as he watched her build the fire. _What would I do without you_? he thought. Always there for him, looking out for him, to forgive him of all his shortcomings, from the most simple things to the biggest of things. How awful it had been, he thought, for her to witness him half drowning. She didn't deserve to go through that. Through the gnawing fatigue and pain in his aching muscles he thought again about how he had acted before New Zealand and never had he felt so bad about it.

As he laid back against the pillow and watched Laura light the fire, Robbie could feel a bump on the back of his head. It must have been where he'd been knocked out. It didn't feel too big a bump, just a little sore, much like the rest of him felt sore and aching but he did feel a little better for resting.

His fingers went to the bruising near his eye. _That man_. _Who was he?_ He needed to know what Laura's connection with him was. Since they had talked about the subject in the ambulance earlier she'd not said anything else about it. He could see she was trying to avoid discussing it but that was partly because they both knew he wasn't really in a fit state to talk. Despite this, she'd avoided any mention of the issue and he felt he shouldn't push her on the subject. He knew she'd tell him when she was ready. Even so, he wanted her to know her was there for her. There was a tightness in her face, a stress that he recognised that he knew came from her being in distress and despite the trauma of the afternoon's events he knew there was other, deeper trouble in her mind. She was trying hard to hide it. With a bright smile she stood up from the little stove, which was now burning well and joined him again on the bed, taking his hand and kissing it as she lay next to him.

"See, I can do it" She said with a look of self-smugness on her face. Despite her jollity Robbie ignored her. Frowning he squeezed her hand back.

"We need to talk, Laura" he said. She could see his eyes were a little glassy from the pain killers and with fatigue.

"Ssh, we will. You need to rest" She said. She stroked his hair to try and soothe him "We'll talk later" her voice was firm but gentle and although she smiled reassuringly at him he could see a shadow of something else behind her smile.

"Promise?" He asked her, despite her attempt at reassurance.

"I promise" she said attempting a smile

He looked at her, wincing slightly as the pain in his ribs and head throbbed again. She smoothed his hair again and the pain lessened

"Laura, did he hurt you?" He asked. She knew he meant not just physically, but also emotionally

She looked back at him, her face was neutral on the surface but he could see there was trouble beneath. Her lips tightened slightly and she looked him straight in the eye. For a few seconds she said nothing, just held his gaze until eventually quietly she said

"No".

He knew that look and that voice and although he knew she wasn't lying he knew also that there was a lot more to it than just a simple "no". He was woozy from the painkillers but part of his mind was scrambling to try and help her.

"I'm here for you, I'm here" he said, wincing again with the pain.

"I know you are. Shh, try and rest" she said and gently stroked his cheek, her fingers carefully avoiding the trauma around his eye from Rex's punch.

She swallowed down emotion as she spoke "I'm here for you too. We'll talk later, rest now" she said and she kissed his forehead. This seemed to placate him and he allowed himself to fall into sleep with his head on her shoulder.

The wind howled all evening and into the night. The rain lashed against the cliffs and the beach in the bay. Waves churned the coastline, tumbling the till and sand and debris along the beach and at the foot of the cliffs around the bay. The wind and rain raced like demons through the little cottage garden, tearing at the shrubs and plants and there was a draughty chill in the cottage. All night throughout the storm Laura kept a vigil over Robbie. He rested and slept, with her at his side on the bed. He awoke several times in the night and Laura gently questioned him each time, checking for signs of concussion.

Laura managed to sleep a little herself, on and off, and eventually, later on, she got changed into some night clothes. She was exhausted but she wanted to keep awake. She was used to dealing with fatigue but the worry that had surfaced from the drama had added extra weight to her tiredness. She held Robbie close while he slept, careful not to disturb him and tried not to think about how she'd nearly lost him.

To distract herself from such thoughts and occupy the time while Robbie rested, Laura continued to read her old penguin edition of Dracula. It was an ancient copy she'd had from her youth. She realised with a wry recognition that she'd read it when she'd finished her A levels. She touched the brown edged pages and thought about the passing of time. This book had been there then and it was here now, like she was, journeying through space in the same way she was. She looked at Robbie while he slept. He was resting well and so far, mercifully, the had been no signs of concussion. The cuts, scrapes and bruises would heal. The bruising round his eye was deep black, like charcoal, fading into a dark reddish-purple. It felt very surreal to think that it had been Rex that had caused the bruising.

Laura read into the early hours and then turned out the bedside light and managed to sleep fitfully for about an hour. She woke again, checking that Robbie was ok as soon as she did so. It was still dark outside; the sunrise was getting later each day as September approached. Laura looked at her phone, it was just past 5am. She felt Robbie stir next to her but he continued to sleep. She lay awake for a while just thinking, then, as it finally started to get light, Robbie stirred again, this time waking up.

As he came out of a deep sleep Robbie's mind supplied him with flashbacks from the previous day's drama. He took a deep breath and a twist of anxiety made his heart race and for a second he was back in the water, breathing in the bitter saltwater. His body tensed and he took another deep breath. Suddenly he felt a hand across his chest. _Laura_ he thought with a rush and realised he was ok and that he was by her side. Robbie grasped at her hand, getting a reassurance from squeezing it tightly and feeling her gripping his hand in return.

"Hello" she said softly, with a smile. "How are you feeling?" He sat up a little and had a drink of water

"Like I've been in a washing machine and then beaten up" He said, his voice soft with the last remnants of sleep.

"You pretty much have, although not in that particular order" she said with a sad smile and she kissed his forehead, taking care not to touch the bruises that were ripening on his face. He could see her studying his bruising around his eye.

"How do I look?" he asked

"like someone's been throwing plums at you" Laura replied

He laughed and then winced as the bruising on his ribs pinched at him.

"Don't make me laugh" he said and she smoothed his hair. He looked at her for a while.

"Tell me. About him" Robbie said

"Well that certainly won't make you laugh" she replied quietly and she looked down and away from him.

He took her hand in his. "Tell me." His voice was gentle and reassuring but the conviction was there.

He needed to know.

"I'll make us a cup of tea" she said, still not looking at him

"No" he said with gentle firmness "Tea can wait"

Finally, her lips tight together, as if trying to hold back one last time what she knew she needed to say, she looked at him and nodded. It was time to for her to talk to him.

* * *

**AN:** Thank you all so much for your feedback and comments. I am so glad you are enjoying reading this story, I am really enjoying writing it – mainly because I know you are all wanting to keep on reading. I have posted this chapter a little earlier than I thought I would as it seemed to finish itself quicker and by getting it posted means I will start writing the next chapter straight away -I have some of it written already. Thanks again SO MUCH for all of you who leave comments, it is much appreciated and once again a big thank you for your readership – you really do help me keep on writing and posting.

Big Love

ML

PS I didn't put Robbie in hospital after his ordeal but I think he and Laura needed a bit of a breather before she felt ready to talk. . . i hope you will forgive me in the fact that Laura is still keeping things to herself. She is ready to talk now and I'm hoping the next chapter won't be too long in its completion.


	17. Chapter 17 Ex Animo

Despite Robbie's protestations over Laura making tea, she refused to do anything until she'd convinced him that he needed at least a drink to keep his fluids up for his recovery.

Eventually, he relented. Robbie had slept well all things considered but looking at Laura he could see she was tired and that was down to her caring for him all night. Five more minutes and a comforting cup of tea wasn't going to stop her telling him things and, in the end, it was Robbie who got out of bed and stretched his legs and made them some tea.

Robbie felt much better for walking about despite his bruises and aches. In the kitchen he made some tea and took it back into the bedroom, handing Laura a mug before getting back into bed with her. She had arranged the pillows for them both and they sat up against them and for a few minutes they drank their tea in silence in the pale early morning light. The storm had passed and the dawn broke peacefully in a sky that was full of a soft white mist.

As Laura sipped at her tea she could feel Robbie looking at her and she turned to see him smiling at her. It was an encouraging, patient smile and she found herself simply nodding at him. She took a deep breath and sighed, and then finally, she spoke.

"After I finished my A levels, before I went to Oxford, I took a gap year off and for some of it I went travelling round Europe."

Despite knowing she was going possibly tell him something difficult, Robbie smiled as she started her story. Just like Laura to strike out on her own and travel alone at that age he thought.

"I went to France first, I took the ferry to Calais and then made my way down the country by train. I loved it, being free after all the hard work getting a place at Oxford, it was good to travel alone too, although I met lots of people my own age along the way, all doing the same thing. It was exciting, going from one place to another, just deciding on my own where I could go next, with no commitments. I headed down into the south of France and then onto Spain and Portugal. While I was in Spain, I met a chap called Raul. He was handsome, intelligent, a complete charmer and I fell head over absolute heels for him."

Robbie smiled at her disclosure. Just as she enjoyed listening to the stories of his youth, he loved it when she told him about hers, giving him an often detailed and intimate picture of her life as a very young woman.

Laura continued, with a very slight smile on her lips that had appeared with her reminiscence.

"Raul was Spanish, well, half Spanish, his mother was from Barcelona, his father was British, an investment banker from London; they were ridiculously well off. Raul was very public school and incredibly charming. I think he was in love with me, for a while anyway."

She took a sip of her tea before she continued "We were engaged."

She wasn't looking at Robbie when she said this but from the corner of her eye she saw his eyebrows rise in surprise as she knew they would. His mouth opened slightly in conjunction with his surprise. She laughed slightly.

"I bet you weren't expecting that were you?" She shot him a sideways look from under her lids. "Neither was I. I was young and despite wanting to be an independent feminist not only did I fall in love with him I fell for the whole notion of romance too. I'd had boyfriends before but this was the first time I'd been in love. In the excitement of being in another country, meeting new people and having new experiences the thought of spending the rest of our lives together was incredibly enchanting. I suppose I had it all mapped out in my head, like you do sometimes when you're that age." She looked at Robbie again, he was still a little stunned at her revelation, his eyes as bright with intent to hear more of her story as she continued to talk.

"Anyway, Raul was Cambridge educated and he'd just finished his degree in mathematics. We got on so well." She smiled again at the recollection, shaking her head slightly at the memories she was bringing forward. "It felt like I'd found the perfect match, my soulmate. We travelled together around Spain for a bit and then went to Greece and Italy and the alps before I had to go back home. It was absolutely wonderful, we slept out under the stars, and did all the things that you only really do at that age when you're in love." Robbie smiled at her again as she continued to unfold the story, and her heart, to him.

"It was quite a fairy tale, He bought me a huge engagement ring when we were in Rome." She laughed, a soft wistful laugh and Robbie could see it was with an affection at the memory. She gazed into space, recalling the events with a clarity that sometimes comes when relaying long ago half-forgotten events.

"Such new experiences can be so exhilarating when you're young." She looked at Robbie. He was still thinking about her being engaged and wondered what was going to come next.

"That feeling, when you realise you want to tell someone you love them, and it's the very first time you've felt like that ever. It can feel so special, you think you've invented it." Now she smiled self-consciously at Robbie, suddenly aware of how she was sounding as she disclosed these things to him. As Robbie listened to her story, he felt a deep feeling of tenderness for her, for her younger more innocent self and for her sharing it with him now. He smiled back at her, reassuring her it was ok to continue and Laura was reminded of what a good listener he was, not just because of years of doing it in his line of work but because it was one of his inherent virtues, to listen and not judge. She'd always loved that about him. She returned the smile but he could see it was now laced with a sadness that became more apparent as she continued talking.

"Of course, it was all nonsense, I knew it wouldn't work; I was off to medical school, for goodness sake, and _that_ was my true passion. The vague starry-eyed plan was that Raul would come to Oxford and do a post grad. To cut a long teenage and _very_ angst-ridden story short, he never came over. Not long after I got back home, he sent me a letter telling me that he was sorry but it had been a mistake getting engaged but that I could keep the ring. I was absolutely heartbroken. I was _so_ in love with him. But I think when I got back to England in the rain and in the midst of a cool damp summer, long before I got his letter, I knew in my heart it wouldn't have worked. Not in a million years." She laughed softly and with a little bit of sadness, as if in fondness of her younger self.

"Anyway, despite that, the bottom line was that I assumed it was something about me who wasn't up to par. That sudden lack of feeling of self-belief was something I needed to fight, it was a new feeling for me" Robbie raised his eyebrows in a silent questioning of what she meant. He had never known Laura as a person who doubted herself. The very notion would have made her chosen career almost impossible.

She saw the question on his face and continued "I went to a private girls' school where we were _taught _confidence, and how to act and how to respond, how to get the upper hand. I'd always excelled at school and in my studies. To suddenly feel like I hadn't come up to someone else's expectations really pulled the rug out from under me." She took another sip of tea and Robbie noticed her rubbing the rim of the cup distractedly. There was a lot more to come to this story, that much was obvious. He frowned to himself and with a sigh she continued.

"Back at home I tried to focus on going to Oxford. My parents were away, travelling in India, the housekeeper was on holiday and my brothers had left home by then so I had the house to myself for a few months before they returned and before I went up. I had free reign to smoke and drink and do what I wanted. Not that I needed to rebel, my parents were quite liberal but I suppose I had time to myself, to heal and get stuff out of my system, without having to explain anything to anyone. I needed to lick my wounds and take stock. I played a lot of loud music and smoked a lot." She took a deep breath. "And that's when I started seeing Rex."

"Rex is. . .?" they were the first words Robbie had spoken since she had started talking.

"Yes" she nodded. "He was from my village and was a lot older than me, he'd been to Oxford, read medicine, had a substantial career behind him and was due to start a consultant position in one of the big London hospitals."

She frowned as the weight of the memory started to press onto her emotions.

"I suppose I was in awe of him. He seemed so clever, there was nothing he didn't know. At first, we went for a few drinks at the local pub and I asked him about Oxford, he was obviously a good source of information. He was very, very charming. Said all the right things, did all the right things. Before I knew it, I was sleeping with him."

Robbie frowned to himself. Already he didn't like how Laura's story was heading. He thought of his daughter at that age and how he would have hated the thought of her being in what seemed, from the little he'd heard, a far from healthy relationship. At only 18 despite her confidence, Laura would have been barely just out of childhood. He knew Laura at that age was mature, travelling around Europe at such a young age on her own in a time before mobile phones and instant communication spoke volumes about her confidence and maturity, but nonetheless Laura was describing a time when she was young and vulnerable, whether she felt it or not. He was worried about what she was going to tell him.

"I didn't tell Rex about Raul, my pride was too badly damaged. Rex though he was my _first one"_ She laughed sardonically. "He seemed to get some sort of thrill thinking that. I didn't put him right, and I realised afterwards that it was an odd thing, that I had kept it from him. That alone should have been a red flag. Looking back there were so many warning bells that I was deaf to until after the event. It's rather like remembering things from a dream." She sighed and finished her tea, setting the cup down on the bedside table. Her hands returned to her lap and she wrung her fingers together in a tight twist of stress.

"He practically moved in. He'd been staying at his parents' house while it was in the process of being sold. They'd emigrated to Canada, I think. Anyway, we drank a lot, smoked, spent days and days in bed. I was completely under his spell." Robbie saw her hands tighten again in a tangled grip on each other, turning her knuckles white, fingernails digging into the flesh on her fingers and the back of her hands.

"And I realise now, that's when things started to change. I started to do things when he told me to, I began to question myself, he would say things and I suddenly lost confidence. I was so besotted by him I hung on his every word. I started to doubt myself. Who I was, how I got my place at Oxford. Which was ridiculous, I knew how hard I'd worked and how much I wanted it. But the doubts crept in. Stupid things like he'd say who had I flirted with when I'd gone to my interview, or that they always gave plenty of places to girls like me because my parents were well off. It was small things but I felt undermined. I think, also, I was a little afraid of him, at least I felt he had some authority because he was older and therefore knew more." She took a deep breath and then sighed, she was frowning, a crease forming between her eyes that Robbie knew appeared when she was worried or upset.

"This went on for a month or so and I even started to wonder if I should be going to Oxford, whether I really deserved my place there. I realised that I hadn't really seen my close friends since returning from Europe. I suppose I didn't want to go through all the business with Raul with them, my pride was a bit battered and I felt stupid about how it had all turned out. I remember, a friend called round to the house one day and Rex told her I wasn't there. That was another odd thing I should have flagged up. Anyway, one morning I went to out to get some bread from the village shop and I bumped into another friend. She was having a party that night and I jumped at the thought of going. It was getting a bit claustrophobic in the house with just the two of us. Rex didn't want us to go, we argued but I went and he came along afterwards. I remember it so clearly. I'd been chatting to a friend's brother who was going into pathology. I realised I came alive again with passion for it and dawned on me that since being with him, Rex had squashed my passion for what I wanted to do. I Saw Rex come into the room, there were loads of people there, but I ignored him. I started to realise I'd not been myself for a while. He came up and just stood in a rather threatening and belligerent way next to me while I was talking to my friend's brother who was intimidated, I think, and he made an excuse and went, leaving me with Rex. I made some comment about how he had cut short the conversation I'd been having, I was quite angry, and told him that maybe we should cool things for a bit. I'd had a drink and I shouted at him, people were looking, wondering what was going on I suppose and seeing me shout at him. He was suddenly very charming, said sorry and could he talk to me, somewhere quiet. I agreed and he took me into one of the bedrooms. Once the door was closed he suddenly turned on me, shouted aggressively to me, told me to never speak to him like that ever again, he pushed me against the wall and almost spat in my face with anger."

Robbie frowned, his lip twisted in an attempt to stem a rising anger , he felt upset and enraged over what he was hearing, but he kept quiet as Laura continued to talk, her hands white again, gripping and writhing within each other.

"I fought back, shouted at him to leave me alone but he pushed me harder against the wall; so I slapped him. I thought he'd got the message at first, because for a few seconds he just looked at me, stunned, I think. But then he lunged at me, he grabbed my wrists with one hand and then the other hand he got around my throat. I thought he was going to strangle me."

She took a deep breath and glanced at Robbie, He was glaring, looking away from her, an obvious look of upset and anger on his face at what she was disclosing. Still he let her talk.

"Someone came in the room, a girl and a boy, looking for somewhere quiet I think. Who knows they may have saved my life because after they disturbed him he stopped. Maybe he realised how close he'd come to doing something that would have had too many consequences. They apologised for disturbing us and I should have said something then, told them what he had just done; but I was embarrassed, ashamed almost. They went and we were alone again and I was terrified." She closed her eyes as if trying to staunch the image of the memory that was now very vivid and real, as if talking about it had projected it in front of her for her to watch again and for Robbie to witness.

"He told me I meant nothing to him, that I was and always would be a bitch, and that if I said anything to anyone about what had happened he'd either kill me or ruin me, so I'd better watch myself. I was terrified. Just physically I was shaking, but the fear of what he'd done and what he had threatened stayed with me for weeks, months even."

Robbie took hold of Laura's hands and gently got her to release them from the grip they had on each other. She realised she'd been clawing her hands together and grabbed onto Robbie's hand and he held it in a reassuring grip. He gently squeezed her hand and she looked at him, her eyes glistening at the corners with the beginnings of tears.

"So he did hurt you" Robbie said softly, but with enough clarity to show Laura that she shouldn't play the events down. "When I asked you last night, if he had hurt you, you said that he hadn't, but you've just described an assault"

"I suppose so."

"There no suppose about it."

She nodded and Robbie squeezed her hand again, gently and she continued talking, her voice quiet but clear in the misty dawn light that was slowly but increasingly illuminating the bedroom.

"After he'd gone, I ran home and locked myself into the house. I was terrified he'd come back. The worse thing was I was worried that I would let him back in, that he'd persuade me to let him come in. He could be very persuasive." She looked up at the skylight, the sky through the glass was a misty calm blue.

"Thank god he didn't come back. I think he even made a move on some other girl at the party. Anyway I bagged up his stuff that he'd left at the house and I was going to burn it all but I worried about the repercussions so I just dumped it one night at his parents' house when I knew he was out. I spent what was left of the summer trying to avoid him. He spread rumours about me around the village, telling people in the pub that I had cheated on him, that sort of thing, accused me of sleeping around. I hadn't done. But I thought, so what if I did? It's a different set of rules if a woman wants to have some fun. Men do it all the time and they are rewarded for it. If a man sleeps around, he's a _stud_, a _jack the lad_; but if a woman does it, she's branded loose or a slag." She sighed again, looking up at the skylight, tears making her eyes shine.

"He was furious that I'd rejected him, I think. And that I'd fought back, I'm not sure he was or is used to that. After the incident at the party he started going out with an even younger girl, from my school. I wish to this day I'd spoken to her, warned her. I don't know if she would have believed me, not with all the lies he'd been spreading. Even when I escaped to Oxford he turned up and stalked me for a while. Luckily I had already made some good friends and they looked out for me and eventually I suppose he lost interest. He tried to muddy my name by spreading more rumours, but by then I really could hold my own and I just brushed them off. Then I heard he'd moved to Edinburgh after the job in London fell through so, mercifully I forgot about him and was happy to let it all sink down and away from the present. I got on with things and I felt I was back to my true self" She looked thoughtful for a moment before she continued

"You know, it's odd but I always felt I can fight my own corner, my job would be difficult if I couldn't. I'm the first to admit that I don't take any nonsense from anyone but for a short while I was vulnerable and Rex seized on the opportunity. Seeing him the other day give me a clarity of the situation that I hadn't really been aware of until now. It was when I realised his wife was clearly being affected that I thought deeply about what he had done to me and what a lucky escape I'd had. I felt so guilty, Robbie, for not calling him out back then, or at least warning other girls about him." She sighed. That's why I knew I had to speak to her.

"Chrissy?"

"Yes"

"How do you know her, I mean, if you'd not seen him for so long?" Robbie gently questioned. There were lots of unanswered questions. He stretched his legs under the duvet, feeling the ache in them but knowing he'd had benefit from a good sleep. Despite what Laura was telling him he felt much better than he had done when they'd got back to the cottage after the day before. Laura, however, still looked pale and troubled, even more so as she recounted to Robbie the chance meeting in the street and then the incident at the restaurant involving Rex and his wife.

"I lied to you, Robbie. It wasn't the lab that troubled me that night, it was seeing him again. I'm sorry. . ."

Suddenly things made sense and Robbie's heart ached for Laura and what she'd held back from telling him "You mustn't be sorry" he said softly. "You should have told me love; you didn't need to keep all this to yourself."

"I thought it was best left sleeping." She sighed, looking down at their hands clasped together. "I didn't want to drag you into something that had just briefly surfaced. It all happened so long ago, I've hardly thought about any of it for a very long time. I thought it would sink down again and although I felt wretched about the whole thing, that he hadn't changed, I wasn't sure what else to do other than to just try and forget about it all again. There wasn't much I could do about the situation, for his wife. But then by chance, I saw her in the street in Whitby. I was about to go for the massage but suddenly there she was. I couldn't let the chance pass. So I followed her and finally I managed to speak to her about Rex. It wasn't an easy conversation at first but by the end I had managed to convey that she wasn't on her own in knowing the true person Rex is."

Laura took a deep breath and Robbie saw sadness and resignation on her face. She levelled her fingers below her eyelids in an effort to stem the tears that were still collecting there.

"I had hoped that when I spoke to her she would look at me as if I was some mad person, that I was talking nonsense about her husband, that somehow he had changed and that it wasn't bad for her. But as soon as I spoke to her it immediately became clear he hadn't changed at all. She was very hostile at first but the more I told her the more she listened and eventually she broke down and told me everything. It was a familiar story much much worse than my experience but it bore Rex's hallmark."

"What did she tell you?" Robbie asked softly, giving her a few moments after she had spoken.

"They married after a whirlwind romance, and all was wonderful for a while. Her parents were concerned about the age gap but they thought he was wonderful too. Then she fell pregnant with Henry and it all began to change for her. The abuse behind closed doors, the intimidation, the taking over of her finances. He stopped her seeing her friends - it all sounded too familiar. If that wasn't enough for her to cope with, things got worse when he lost his job as a consultant. He'd assaulted a porter and a patient and although it never came to court apparently he's not been able to find work since. He's been living off Chrissy and her parent's money. They're quite wealthy and when he lost his job that's when things really started to get unbearable for her. He spent her money from her trust funds, her savings, told her to tell her parents she needed it for others things when they got suspicious and asked her questions. He's taken out credit cards and spent excessively. It's a mess for her, Robbie. She told me that he also has quite a drug problem and that she's contracted an STD, despite him being her only partner since they were married so he's clearly having other relationships."

Robbie told Laura about Rose, and how he knew now that her abuser and dealer was Rex. Despite knowing that Rex was in custody this new revelation seemed to upset Laura even more as it became apparent that Rose was yet another victim.

"I feel so guilty Robbie. I was able to walk away and forget but I did nothing for the women who became much worse victims of him than I was. I should have told them, warned them, the ones I knew about, maybe it would have stopped him" The tears that had been threatening since she had started talking to Robbie and they now welled up and over, flooding her face and turning her eyes red.

"No, love. You mustn't feel guilty. You were young and he took advantage. He threatened you with violence. And regardless, you're not to blame for what he did, to you or to anyone else. What would you tell me? All the times I've felt responsible for things at work and you've been there to tell me none of it was my fault? Well, none of this is your fault either." Eventually she nodded in agreement at what Robbie had said.

"Anyway" she sighed, catching her breath in a slight sob. "My Experience with Rex was a long, long time ago, I've not thought of it for, well I don't know when it last came into my thoughts. It was very intense over a short period of time and what I went through was nothing compared to what Chrissy and Rose have undergone. I'm probably making it out to sound worse than it was."

"No, Laura, don't play this down." Robbie said, firmly. He knew she was good at dismissing things with a stiff upper lip and just getting on with business as usual. It was a public-school attitude and stoicism that he also saw in Hathaway. But with Laura at least she did address her issues, she faced them - work issues, issues with colleagues, she usually dealt with things head on but he could see her sidestepping this issue and it scared and alarmed him to see it happen in front of him. He squeezed her hand and she looked at him.

Something was bothering him about it all, something that he had been worried about as her story had unfolded. She saw he was frowning. He spoke softly, still holding her hand

"Laura, did he. . . did he ever force you?" Robbie looked at her, tears were gathering again in her eyes. She looked down at their hands, clasped together. She paused go for a second, taking a breath.

"Into having sex? No. But there were times when I didn't want to sleep with him, and do things, but I convinced myself that I did, or it was just easier to go along with it because of his attitude."

As soon as she'd said the words, they both knew. Things had changed so much over the years regarding what was and what wasn't consent. Robbie frowned. He felt angrier by the second but he knew it wasn't helpful for Laura if he let the anger rise. She needed his support not his own reaction to how he felt about it all. He looked at her, and continued to hold her hand, his thumb gently caressing it.

"You need to tell DS Cox all of this when he comes round later." Robbie's voice was firm but calming "Do you remember the names of the girls and women he went out with? Even if it's just a first name they might be able to trace them. It will all help to get a conviction. I've a suspicion that Sergeant Cox won't come alone, my guess is he'll come with his DI. I have a feeling that there's a whole raft of crimes this Rex is sitting on."

Robbie looked at her. She looked exhausted but she nodded at his words. He put his arm around her and pulled her close, not caring about his ribs pinching at him with an aching sharp pain as he held her to him kissing her temple. He realised she was crying again. He felt there wasn't much he could say, so he just held her while the pressure of the past 24 hours finally took effect and despite Laura's ability to function at a high level under similar stress, the personal toll had inevitably collected its debt from her.

Robbie felt awful for her. It was one thing for him to be tossed through the waves but another for her to watch him being rescued lifeless by the coastguards. And then to have to recall all these things from the past. He held her close, not caring about his bruised ribs, just wanting to make sure he could show how much he knew she'd been affected by it all, and that he was there for her.

In his arms, Laura felt the conviction of Robbie's embrace but after a minute she pulled away, concern on her face and in her voice.

"Your ribs, Robbie, don't put pressure on them"

He smiled at her, wincing. She was right again and yet again was thinking of him instead of herself.

Suddenly she managed to take control of herself. The tears and intense outpouring of emotion had been enough of a release to pull herself together and focus on his wellbeing again.

"I've got some arnica cream in my sponge bag, Robbie, you should have some on your bruises, let me get it."

Robbie wasn't sure what arnica was but he felt it would be good to just let Laura fuss over him for a bit, for her benefit.

Laura returned and administered the cream onto his bruising from a little blue glass jar. The initial midnight blacks of his bruises had started to turn deep crimson and damson with a greenish yellowish tinge at the edges. The skin was still sore and tender but the cream did soothe him, although he suspected it was the feel of Laura's touch that was at the heart of how much better it made him feel.

He watched as she carefully smoothed his skin with a delicate touch that felt as light as a feather.

She smiled at him

"it's healing already" she said eyebrows rising in surprise and in her eyes the familiar look of affection she often held for him, it was a familiar sight but one he'd not seen for a few days. She was going to be ok. There was more to talk about, after what she had told him, but right now she looked tired and drawn. She needed rest

"If it's looking better that's down to you" he said. "You look done in, love, you've looked after me all night, why don't you try and get forty winks eh?"

"I am a bit tired. Are you ok, are you feeling ok? No nausea or anything?"

"I'm fine love. Come here" and he pulled her close to him again and she lay next to him as he put his arm round her and smoothed her hair to try and soothe her.

After a while he felt her body soften into a more relaxed state and she had closed her eyes. He looked up to the skylight in the cottage bedroom. The sky was clearing from a soft misty blue to reveal a cloudless and perfect sky. Robbie looked down at Laura, she was sleeping soundly. Finally the storm had passed.

* * *

**AN:** Thanks for your patience in waiting for this chapter after all the carrot dangling I've done. It was a tough one to write – not only because of the subject matter but it was quite heavy on the monologue so it took a while for me to get it how I wanted it. As regards to the subject matter, I didn't want to lay it on too heavy for Laura. She is portrayed as a strong woman in the Lewis series and I didn't want to deviate from that but I did want to explore how attitudes have changed over the years regarding sex crimes of all natures and severity including coercive control. I think many women have some sort of story about how they have been taken advantage of, sexually or in a social context by a man purely because of their gender. It might only be a small incident – just a comment or a gesture for example, sadly for some women it is much much worse. Some of these incidents were deemed not criminal in the past but now things are changing they are being talked about much more and it is becoming apparent that a lot of things that may have happened in the past would now be classified as crimes. I think Laura experienced plenty of sexism in her career but I wanted to explore the possibility of her having a #metoo moment. I didn't want her experience to be unbearable, but I wanted to explore what might have or could have happened to not just her, but any woman in the past. Having said that, this narrative isn't just about those issues, my main other concern with this story is of **FLUFF** so now most of the heavy stuff is done with, I can concentrate on that – Let's see, we've had the Peril, we've had a bit of mystery ( there's still a few loose ends to tie up ) which leaves us with more romance and of course, the hot tub. Anyway, thanks all for reading if you've got this far. It is much appreciated and I do hope you are still enjoying the story, there's a bit more to come before this tale is done.

Love to you all

ML

PS this is a long chapter but for various reasons it felt right to put it all in one place instead of breaking it in to shorter ones


	18. Chapter 18 Statements

**AN: Hi everyone. I've not felt like writing much recently what with all the CV-19 crisis. I am self employed so I'm really worried about my financial situation as well as my health and the health and mortality of everyone else, not just those close to me but everyone in the world. I really hope each and every one of you reading this is well and that your loved ones are well. I found that for a while after the crisis hit full on mode that I couldn't concentrate on writing but now I am finding a little solace and distraction through it. I hope you will continue to join me and our heroes in a little escapism from the dread that is currently on all of our minds. Love and good health to you all ML**

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It was still early in the morning when Robbie got out of bed and, carefully putting the covers over her, left Laura sleeping while he went into the cottage kitchen.

In his arms, after they'd talked, she had slept for a little while, she'd cried more tears and they had talked some more. He'd held her close and told her to try and get a bit more rest.

Eventually, they had both dropped off to sleep again. Robbie wasn't sure if it was a deep sleep for Laura, but anything would be better than no sleep at all, especially after the trauma of the emotions of the morning and the events of the previous day. He awoke again after a couple of hours and felt better, in body at least. Listening to Laura's story had been tough. He was angry and upset but he knew showing it to her would pay no favours. She needed pragmatic help and his experience as a DI came to the fore and together they had discussed practically what might happen to Rex and Chrissy, given the evidence and circumstances and Laura had seemed to accept that hopefully, perhaps, that justice might get done in the long run. She had seemed calmed enough to get some sleep at any rate and Robbie knew that was a good sign and an indication that she was going to be ok.

In the kitchen, Robbie put rashers of bacon under the grill, cut some bread and then made a pot of coffee. Outside the sun poured brightly into the cottage garden and the birds were busy in the herb bushes as they had been the day before, looking for insects and seemingly enjoying the morning sunshine after the bad weather of the previous day. Robbie saw the note on the countertop about the hot tub and thought wryly about how their holiday had turned out compared to how it could have been without all the drama and the trauma.

With a slight frown on his face, Robbie made bacon sandwiches and piled them onto plates and was looking for a tray to take them into the bedroom when Laura appeared in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Oh, you're awake. I was just about to bring these through. Hope you're up for a bacon butty?"

"Always. They look good Robbie."

"Yeah, well even I can't mess a bacon sandwich up"

Laughing softly Laura went up to him, still in her nightclothes and dressing gown and kissed him as he bent forward to greet her.

"I'm starving, actually" she said, studying him as he handed her a bacon sandwich on a plate

"You look a lot better than you did yesterday, how are you feeling?" She asked

"Actually, I'm feeling alright" and his voice and face reassured Laura. He did look a lot better and she was relieved that he'd not shown any signs of concussion.

They opened the door onto the garden and ate their breakfast and they both felt the benefit of the fresh air and sunlight. The sun was strong for late August but there was a slight chill in the shadows that seemed to herald the coming of autumn.

Finishing their coffee, Laura and Robbie chatted for a while, discussing the inevitable visit from DS Cox and, for them both, there was a familiar comfort of discussing such matters within the realms of their normal behaviour. They would often discuss cases at home together and the recent events had, despite being so personal for Laura, taken on an air of familiar procedural methodology that seemed to calm and ground them both.

After a while their conversation turned to their respective youths, and how different their experiences had been in their younger years.

"I still can't get over the fact that you were engaged" said Robbie, eyebrow raised in gentle surprise. Laura regarded him with one of her looks, her lips pursed but with a gleam in her eye.

"Go on" She said "get all the jokes out of the way – how he must have been the bravest man on the planet to ask me to marry him et cetera"

Robbie looked at her for a few seconds before he replied, a soft smile "No, I'd say he was the smartest man on the planet, until he broke it off"

Laura looked at Robbie for a minute, a tired and slightly quizzical expression on her face.

"Anyway" She continued, looking at Robbie with a puzzled smirk on her lips, "just for the record, that was the one and only time I've been engaged."

She laughed softly. "If I'd married each time I thought it warranted it, I'd have been divorced just as many times. Well, almost."

She gave him a sideways glance. Robbie frowned he wasn't quite sure what she meant by that.

She sighed as she continued "I was young and it's the sort of silly thing you do when you're young. It was all just purely adolescent foolishness but getting so royally dumped like that knocked me for six at the time. Quite terribly so."

Robbie gave her a sympathetic smile. It upset him to think of Laura being hurt so young, despite her personality of bold bravado he knew she could be vulnerable at times and he felt for her heartbreak at a young age. He'd not been much older when he'd met Val and if the feeling of intense love he had felt for her had been the same that Laura had felt for this Raul bloke then his heart ached for her younger self. He smiled at her again and she looked back at him suddenly aware of his apparent empathy towards her, even though he didn't say anything she saw it in his face. She smiled back at him, a thoughtful smile as she continued talking.

"You know, I'd forgotten all about Raul to be honest. I mean very, very occasionally I would think of him but in a sense of thinking about the me at that time, not really him. A few years later I saw in a society magazine that he'd got a banking job at his father's firm and married into minor royalty and had 5 kids, so I had a rather narrow escape I think" and she laughed. Robbie chuckled back with her, somehow he couldn't see her fitting into such a lifestyle either.

"Anyway," she sighed as she continued "it heralded the start of me being dumped each time I thought I'd found _the one. _She looked out at the garden. The sparrows were squabbling loudly in the bushes and above the cottage a massive black backed gull soared across the blue cloudless sky.

Laura looked at Robbie, raising her eyebrows in contemplation "Rather foolishly I felt like I'd been cursed. Numerous relationships seemed to follow the same pattern – I'd get dumped for various reasons, and I always felt it was down to something I was or wasn't doing. Franco went to work in Switzerland, he chose work over me, which is fair enough but there was a similar job in London that he could have taken instead of going overseas. So of course, the same demon returned, and I assumed again it was something I was doing or wasn't doing that ultimately drove him away."

Robbie frowned to himself and looked down to the sunlit floor of the garden terrace. He wanted to say he hoped he'd never given cause to make her feel like that. He didn't think he had but then he thought about how he'd behaved before New Zealand, how he was so ready to just give her up for his own needs, how rejected she must have felt, and he felt bad again. He'd done to her what all the other men had done in her life, granted not on the same level, but maybe what he'd done had been just as bad in principle. He wanted to talk about it and say sorry. But this morning's conversation had been about her feelings, not his, so he simply smiled at her, desperately hoping to convey to her that he was still listening.

She continued to talk. "You know" she said, a thoughtful look on her face, "I've got the ring somewhere, maybe I should sell it; I could give the money to charity."

"Bloody hell!" Robbie suddenly exclaimed

"What?" Laura watched as Robbie leapt up "what's wrong Robbie?"

"Where's my stuff- my clothes from yesterday?"

"The wet clothes?"

"Yes!?"

"By the front door, I just dumped the bag there yesterday when we got in. Why?"

Robbie didn't answer but almost sprinted to the front of the cottage and went into the porch. Grabbing the bag of wet clothes he returned to the sitting room where Laura had followed him, with a slight alarm at his sudden panic.

"I bet it's gone. I don't believe this." He said

"What's gone? Robbie? What's wrong?"

Robbie tipped out the damp clothes onto the floor and grabbed for his jeans. They were covered in sand and grit and were still wet with seawater.

"Bloody hell" he said, his voice a mix of mild anger and exasperation as he turned out the pockets of his jeans "I knew it!"

"What Robbie?"

"The ring, it's gone. The jet and pearl ring. Damn it!" He rifled through the other clothes and pulled out his wallet and phone. "How come these survived?!" he said, "of all the things!" he exclaimed again

It took a second for Laura to realise what he was talking about, then she remembered, the memento mori ring purchased for her the day before.

"It doesn't matter, Robbie"

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed again. "I'm sorry love"

"I don't care about the ring, Robbie, you're safe and you're here and that's all I want or care about." And Robbie looked at her and saw her eyes full of emotion again. He relented in his irritation, he didn't want to see her upset again but he was still in dismay, it seemed like the final insult.

"It cost a bloody fortune!"

"A very small price to pay for you being here." She said, taking his hands in hers, her eyes glistening with the threat of tears and her voice quiet behind a gate of emotion "Come here" and she wrapped her arms around him, being careful not to press on his bruises.

He realised what she was conveying. He'd not quite started to process what a near miss he'd had but he knew it was Laura that was more traumatised by things at the moment, much more than he was.

"You're right" he said with a sigh, pulling back and looking at her. He gently moved a lock of hair that had fallen over her eyes "I'm still annoyed though"

And Laura, suddenly relieved and amused at the fact that Robbie was worried about what seemed a trivial matter compared to what had transpired in the last 24 hours, laughed softly as she pulled back and saw his face. It was one she recognised from many instances of him being irritated or grumpy. Then her attention went to his bruised eye. The colours were changing. Robbie saw the concern in her eyes along with a sadness and then an underlying anger.

"I'm ok" he said, seeking to soothe her.

She nodded and her hand went to his cheek just below his bruising

"Listen." She said " I'm going to go for a quick shower then pop down to that little shop in Robin Hoods bay. We both need something nutritious in our systems, I'll make a soup or something and we need some more milk."

"At you sure? We can always get a takeaway if need be." Robbie asked.

"No, I'll make something fresh" she said, her hand on his chest and he felt the comfort from the simple familiarity of her gesture.

"Ok, if you're sure" Robbie said with a smile. He knew not to push it further. And she was a doctor after all. She returned the smile, and he saw the reassuring spark come back into her eyes that told him she was ok. With a final caress of his chest and a kiss she went for a shower.

An hour later and Laura made her way back to the cottage from the little shop in Robin Hoods bay. She'd bought fresh vegetables and bread and milk and had everything she needed to make a soup that would be light enough for Robbie's stomach after all the salt water he'd ingested and nutritious enough to keep them both going for the rest of the day. She'd also bought some local cheese and homemade pickle that she knew Robbie would like. She'd left him earlier having a shower and had checked his injuries to find they were all starting to heal well. His bruising was still very vivid and sore, but she knew in time it would fade and heal. As for herself she was already starting to feel better. She had told Robbie things that she'd not thought of for decades. It was a relief to tell him. He was the only man she'd ever told about this part of her distant past. She knew now how important that fact alone was to her.

As she turned into the track that lead up to the cottage she noticed another car next to Robbie's. The DS had obviously arrived. She sighed to herself. She wasn't looking forward to going through it all again but at least Robbie was there and knew everything now. That helped. Her focus was now on justice for Chrissy and perhaps somehow there would be some for all the other women whose lives Rex had ruined.

Laura let herself in to the cottage and could hear Robbie talking to DS Cox. As she took her shoes off she listened to the conversation from the little hallway.

"So, Doctor Hobson is your wife?" She heard DS Cox ask, his voice strong with the local accent.

"Oh, er, no not my wife" Robbie replied. "But she is my better half"

Laura smiled to herself and felt her stomach squeeze with affection at Robbie's words.

"Oh well we all need one of those" said DS Cox

"Aye we do." Continued Robbie "and she's the best" Laura felt a lump in her throat and the rising threat of emotion at hearing what he'd said. Swallowing it down she went into the room.

"Oh, hello love, DS Cox has come to take statements, and this is DI Salter." Robbie motioned to a man in his mid-forties who stood up as Laura came into the room. Introducing herself Laura sat next to Robbie opposite the DI and DS Cox who was sitting in an armchair with a laptop on his knee.

Robbie and Laura both gave their accounts of the previous day's events and it was odd for them both to be on the other side of the investigation line. Laura supplied as much detail as she could and both she and Robbie were relieved to hear that Rose had come forward to give a statement.

"We've known about Rex Winterson for a while." DI Salter said looking first at Laura and then Robbie. He was a big man, tall and broad and commanded most of the small sofa he was sitting on. "Winterson and his wife live in York but they often occupy a holiday residence up here that belongs to his wife's mother"

"Chrissy? How is she?" Laura asked

"She's doing ok, the little lad is with his grandparents in York. Mrs. Winterson will undergo a psychological assessment but with the evidence from you we can hope that it was a culmination of pressure that caused her to do what she did. The homeless woman, Rose, she's got her fair share of problems, some minor form not surprising given her situation on the streets, but generally she's just another of his victims."

DI Salter handed Robbie a print-out. Robbie took it and saw it was a mugshot of Rose and other details including various incidents and arrests.

"Poor lass" said Robbie, looking over the handout that listed various arrests and other incidents from shoplifting to drug possession.

"There's a lot of ruined lives left in Rex Winterson's wake, but we're building a good case against him and all this evidence will help." And he looked at Laura with a reassuring but guarded smile.

"We'll keep you updated about developments" He continued. Laura looked at the photo of Rose _yes _she thought at Robbie's words, _poor lass_. Her thoughts wandered again back to Rex but in spite of this she was hopeful that the wheels of justice might just be in motion for her and for Chrissy at the very least.

The sound of a mobile phone buzzing and ringing suddenly pulled Laura from her ruminations

"Ah, excuse me" said DI Cox and he stood up to answer his phone. "Yes, ok, we're on our way, sir"

"They've got them" He said with a stern excitement to his colleague. DS Salter stood up from the sofa

Robbie raised his eyebrows, alert by default from what was obviously an important work phone call.

"I'm sorry, we've got to go" DS Salter said "Drugs smuggling bust in the harbour"

Suddenly both men were galvanized into an action that Robbie was all too familiar with. With a hasty goodbye to Laura they made their way to the cottage front door.

"I'll see you out" Robbie said, following behind them.

Laura raised her eyebrows. Although glad to give her statement she was relieved to see the back of the two detectives. It had been testing on her to have to go through everything again, even with Robbie's support. She sighed and picked up the handout of Rose that DI Salter had left on the coffee table.

Laura studied the picture for a while. Something was bothering her, she looked again at the photo of Rose. There was something not exactly familiar, but. . . she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Frowning with concentration she read through the details on the handout.

"How about a cuppa, love?" Robbie said as he came back into the sitting room. The two detectives had left at speed. He felt a little tired and achy but like Laura he was glad the DI and the DS had left.

"I don't know about you but I'm parched, could probably do with anther painkiller too" Despite this admission Laura ignored Robbie. She was still studying the handout, an intense look on her face as if she was doing a complicated sum in her head.

"Are you alright love?" Robbie asked, puzzled at her behaviour

Laura looked up suddenly

"Robbie, where's your wallet?"

"What?"

"Your wallet!"

"Why do you want my wallet?"

"Just get it me, Robbie!" she cried

With speed and curiosity Robbie did as she said and went again to the sorry heap of damp clothes he'd rifled through earlier in his vain hope of finding the ring. His wallet had survived remarkably well in a zipped pocket in his jacket, there was just a little dampness to the edges. He cursed himself for not putting the ring in there instead of his trouser pocket.

"Here" He said, handing Laura the wallet, which she almost snatched from his grasp.

"Laura? What's so important?" Robbie asked, now completely dumbfounded.

Laura looked up at Robbie. "There's something in here I need to see"

And she opened Robbie's wallet. . .


	19. Chapter 19 Revelations

Robbie had absolutely no idea what was driving Laura's emphatic desire to see the contents of his wallet.

Frowning, he sat down next to her on the sofa and watched as she pulled out from the front part of his wallet a couple of bank notes, a receipt and a trio of dog-eared business cards he kept in there. Obviously not finding what she was looking for, her fingers deftly moved to the other compartment. She pulled out more receipts and thumbed through them with croupier like speed and dexterity.

Finally, she found what she was looking for.

"Here!" She exclaimed pulling something out that was hidden amongst the scrappy bits of paper. Robbie was now even more confused. In her hand she held the snapshot photo he had shown her earlier in the week.

"Me and Tommy?" He said, an amused questioning smile on his face "What's that got to do with the price of eggs?"

Laura ignored him, she was too intent on the photo which she was studying with the same meticulousness as if it had been a forensic test result. She turned it over and read the back and then turned it back to look again closely the picture of Robbie and Tommy on Scarborough beach. Then she picked up the handout of Rose and looked carefully again. She looked at Robbie, a bright look in her eye. She handed Robbie the photo and the handout. "Look at them, Robbie" She said.

Robbie looked back at her, taking the photo back and looking at it, not really sure at what he was supposed to be looking at. He looked at Laura, dumbfounded again.

Laura's eyes were bright and alert, and Robbie almost felt like they were working on a case, so intense was her look and conviction. He shook his head slightly.

Laura, her eyes even more intent, "Look at Tommy, Robbie, and then look at Rose" She said.

Robbie frowning, still confused, did what Laura said. He looked at Tommy and then Rose.

And his jaw dropped.

There was no mistaking it.

"Bloody Hell" he said quietly, "Am I seeing what you're seeing?"

He didn't take his eyes off the photos "Rose. She's the spit of Tommy"

"Yes" said Laura, her eyes still shining with excitement "Now look at the back of the photo"

Robbie turned the photo over. He read aloud what he had written, on the back of the photo, all those years ago, in blue biro.

"Me and Tommy Rose, Scarborough, June 1971" He looked at Laura. "Bloody Hell" He said again.

"Now look at Rose's date of birth" Laura said, and Robbie switched his focus to the handout.

"Date of birth 28th March 1972" He said as he looked at Laura again. "Tommy. Tommy Rose. He was her father"

"You said Tommy _shacked up with a lass_" Said Laura "Rose's date of birth, or date of _assumed _birth as she was found abandoned, matches up with the date you and Tommy were in Scarborough"

Robbie looked again at the photos. The similarity between Rose and Tommy was unmistakable. Rose had Tommy's hair eyes and mouth, and strikingly so.

"She said she was found in a fish crate, with a note saying that her name was Rose" Robbie said. "Her birth mother, she must have named her after Tommy's surname."

"If she was local, she must have hidden the birth and the pregnancy" Said Laura, looking at Robbie.

He frowned as he contemplated the situation.

"It goes without saying we can only confirm this with a DNA test, we can't assume this all on just these facts" Laura continued.

"I'd say it was pretty obvious though"

"Obvious or not, Robbie, it can't be fact until we have the science, and if there's no traceable family members we may never get to do that"

"Tommy had a sister" Said Robbie thoughtfully "She was older than him, a nice lass. They were close as I remember. She was heartbroken when he died. I don't know if she's still alive though. And if we could trace her - well, it's a lot to take in, a lot to take in if it turns out not to be as we think, although I don't see any other explaination. It is all a bit odd, isn't it, I mean, what are the chances?"

Laura raised her eyebrows in contemplation. She looked at Robbie, the bruise around his eye was as varied as a painter's brush stroke, a complex smudge of blacks and reds and purples. She was suddenly aware she had neglected his injuries and wellbeing in the ensuing revelations.

"Robbie, you said something about a painkiller, let me get you one" She said, her hand on his knee

"Ah, I'm alright, I could murder a cup of tea though"

Laura smiled. She could tell he wanted a painkiller but didn't want her to worry.

"Right" She said. "A cup of tea and a tablet it is then" Laura got up from the sofa leaving Robbie with the photo and the handout.

Robbie sighed. _What a mess_ he thought. He looked at the photo of him and Tommy and thought back to the time it was taken. It had been a hot day, the beach was crowded and the sea had been full of people and children of all ages swimming and cooling off. Robbie looked at Tommy's face staring out from the photo, down all the years_. If only you'd known_ he thought _would you have done anything?_ Tommy had been a bit of a lad but now Robbie thought about things a little differently. Maybe Tommy wouldn't have done anything if he'd known he'd left a girl pregnant. Or maybe he would have. Robbie realised that he'd only spent a few short years, months even, with Tommy. How well can you know someone or know yourself even at that age and for a short amount of time. How things change as you get older he thought, how time seems so odd and stretched out yet so far away.

That day on the beach had been the day he and Tommy had seen the gypsy. Robbie frowned. She had been right after all. _Stay away from the water_ she had told Tommy. And when he'd told her to get lost, in not so kind a way, she'd paused a while, just staring at him. Robbie remembered Tommy was a little spooked by her. He'd responded by more derision and swearing but the old woman had held her gaze at him. _You'll never leave here_. She'd said _You'll always be here, in Scarborough and all around, mark my words_. And Tommy had laughed at the old woman and walked off. Robbie had felt bad and he apologised to the gypsy who was just a frail old woman after all. He'd given her some money as a way of apology but she'd refused. And then she had told Robbie his fortune. Robbie put the photo down with a heavy sigh. He looked at the picture of Rose and thought about how odd and cruel fate could be, how random events could shape a whole life. And he thought again of the gypsy's words to Tommy. She had been right on both accounts. He was still in Scarborough, albeit through Rose's life.

"Here you go" It was Laura with a cup of tea. Robbie looked up at her. She was smiling at him, her face and eyes full of affection and love and care. She set two mugs of tea down on the table and then handed him two bullet shaped painkillers before sitting down next to him.

"You get those in your system and then after this cup of tea I'll make a pan of soup" She said with almost matronly assurance. Robbie smiled back at her; suddenly incredibly aware of how much he loved her and how close to death he'd been only a few hours before.

"Yes Doctor" He said with a wink and a smile, giving her a long gaze.

Sipping at their tea they discussed how odd it all was, and Laura chatted about the probabilities of coincidence while Robbie was mulling over what might happen to Rose now, whether things might change in her life.

After a while an easy silence fell between them, they were still both tired and a little overwhelmed after the tide of events that had come to pass. Both had also realised that their break away was nearly over. With this in mind Robbie was about to suggest that maybe they could go for a walk on the beach in the afternoon when suddenly Laura's phone buzzed and chimed with her familiar ringtone.

"Oh" She said, looking at the caller display. "I think you should take this" And she handed the phone to Robbie with a smile.

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**AN: Thanks for continuing to read everyone. I hope you are all well. I am really finding writing a good distraction at the moment from many things, not just the virus, so this story is progressing quickly; so much so that I will have to start thinking about my next writing project. . . Anyway all the best for now and thanks for keeping on reading - as long as people want to read I will keep on writing :)  
**

**ML**


	20. Chapter 20 Making A Call

**AN: Thank you again for reading, and your messages. Like everyone else, my life has been flipped upside down so I'm really using writing to cope with stuff, and it's resulting in posting things quicker than I ever intended to - which is good as I have a nice chapter I want to write that I will need to take a little more time with, so I hope you enjoy these quick fire chapters before I get to that one.**

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Robbie took the phone from Laura. Smiling he pressed the answer button

"Hello Pet" He said, a smile beaming across his face.

Laura smiled too. She could just hear Lyn's voice on the other end of the phone as Robbie interrupted his daughter as she spoke.

"Oh, sorry pet, have you been trying to call? . . Erm, yeah, sorry my phone's out of order. . . Oh?. . .really?. . .no pet I'm fine, really"

Laura frowned at Robbie, what she had heard from the conversation seemed to suggest that Lyn knew that something had happened.

Robbie saw Laura's confusion.

"One of her friend's on holiday in Filey and saw it on the local news" He whispered to Laura away from the phone.

Laura raised her eyebrows. She imagined that Lyn must be at her wits end if she'd not been able to contact Robbie on his mobile.

"I'm fine, pet, really. . . Ah, no, well, y'know. . . I only did what anyone else would have done. . . I wouldn't say hero. . . hey! Cheeky, less of the "old" eh? . . ." Robbie glanced at Laura who was smiling to herself at what she was hearing. She picked up the tea mugs off the table and took them into the kitchen area.

As she rinsed out the mugs in the sink, Laura listened as Robbie filled Lyn in on the drama of the day before, leaving out some details that he knew didn't need to be passed on; some of which would come at a later date, but for now she could hear that Robbie was just glad to be speaking to his daughter. She heard him talk about his dramatic rescue and again he played it down. Laura shook her head to herself. There was yet another reason she loved him – his modesty and self-deprecation. After a while the subject matter turned to the coming weekend. Jack was due to come for a visit and she could hear from Robbie's end of the conversation that Lyn was worried about whether Robbie would be well enough for the visit.

"I'm fine, Pet" Robbie emphasized to his daughter "Really I am. . . Yes don't worry. . . No I'll be fine, pet. I still want him to stay I'll be ok. Listen, have a word with Laura in a sec if you don't believe me, she's been looking after me, so you don't need to worry, eh?"

Laura smiled at Robbie, nodding to let him know she understood what the issue was. Although Robbie was still a little worse for wear after his ordeal Laura knew that if they had to cancel Jack's visit it would probably do Robbie more harm than good.

"Listen, pet, I'm going to go, I feel a bit tired. Laura wants to talk to you and we'll see you all soon eh? Alright pet, bye, love you too. . . bye" he handed the phone to Laura who was able to put Lyn's mind at rest.

Robbie could tell Lyn was quizzing Laura about his injuries and it was obvious that by the end of the conversation she was satisfied by what she had heard from Laura and that her Dad was ok after all he'd been through.

After Laura had finished the call with Lyn, she instructed Robbie to go and take a nap or at least have a rest on the bed for a while. He didn't protest and after a while she was pleased to see him snoozing lightly. Assured that he was getting some rest she went into the kitchen and started to make lunch. After 30 minutes she had a saucepan full of fresh vegetable soup simmering on the hob. She put the cheese and the bread on the table along with some bowls and cutlery and then turned off the hob to let the soup cool a little before they ate.

She went into the cottage's bedroom and quietly as she could joined Robbie on the bed. He was still sleeping. She lay on her side next to him and looked at him. How close had she come to losing him?

She thought of DS Cox asking Robbie if she was his wife _No but she is my better half_.

Laura smiled, but it was a smile tinged with sadness. She knew what having a wife meant to Robbie.

_Everything_.

Was that why he'd been so quick to not go to New Zealand? If they had been married would the decision of him not going with her been unquestionable? Despite numerous discussions and lamentations and heartfelt apologies from Robbie, Laura still sometimes picked the situation apart and came to the conclusion that such a reason might have been the case, or that simply she wasn't enough for him. Would being married make a difference? What _was_ marriage anyway? To Laura it was something that was a remnant of a patriarchal system that made women part of an exchange mechanism, created when the first farmers realised it could be used as a bargaining tool between families to gain land and livestock. But for Robbie it wasn't about that. It was about being devoted to someone, to love them until death and beyond as far as it was possible. The sentiment was the same for Laura but she just didn't need the ritual and the trappings of marriage. She didn't care if the world knew it or not. But she knew it mattered to Robbie. As far as all that was concerned being married didn't change that feeling, if it was there it was there. But for Robbie it celebrated the feeling, told the world that you'd found that special person. Deep in this thought, Laura looked again at Robbie. He made a small snuffle of a noise that made Laura smile. He stirred, as if sensing her next to him and after a few minutes he awoke.

"Hello" She said quietly, gently stroking the back of her fingers against his cheek. His skin was soft; he'd shaved when he'd had a shower.

"you ok?" She continued "Good sleep?"

"Aye, I think so; actually yes" He said, his voice soft and gravelly. "I had quite a deep sleep I think, I feel better anyway."

"You were snoring your head off, so you're certainly getting back to normal" She said with a cheeky smirk.

He laughed softly. He could never be quite sure if Laura was over exaggerating his slumberous sounds or if he did snore loudly these days.

"I'm going to get some fresh air in the garden" Said Laura with a warm smile. "Lunch is ready, whenever you are" And she kissed his cheek and got up off the bed and disappeared through the door of the bedroom.

Robbie sighed. He did feel better, much better and the nap had refreshed him.

He got out of bed and went into the living area. Outside he could see Laura crouching down in the garden looking at a blueish spiky plant with purple flowers. Robbie was hungry and the aroma of the soup Laura had made caused his stomach to rumble. He didn't want to keep himself or Laura waiting for lunch, but there was something he needed to do quickly.

He picked up Laura's phone that she had left on the table and thumbed through to the recent call list and pressed dial. "Hello again. . . No don't worry I'm fine. Listen, pet, you're on that facebook thing aren't you?. . . yeah. . . I wonder if you can do me a favour"


	21. Chapter 21 A Fresh View

Over their lunch, Robbie and Laura discussed the events again. Robbie sensed that Laura was still a little in shock at having witnessed his rescue. He felt fine, he was used to situations that put him at risk, but he felt for Laura and he could see it had shaken her up, not to mention having to drag up the past and talk about it all again. He was glad to see she had eaten well, however, that was always a good sign she was ok.

"That was a good soup, Love, thanks, I feel even better now I've eaten" Robbie said to Laura, as she got up from the table.

"Good. You certainly look a lot better. How about we go for a walk later, on the beach?" she said collecting up the soup bowls and taking them to the sink before coming back to clear the rest of the table.

"Oh – you read my mind, just what we need I think" said Robbie

"Absolutely. It's a beautiful day, we should make the most of it before we go back home. This time next week I'll be. . ." Laura's words were cut short by the buzz and chirp of her phone.

"Oh, it's Lyn again" She said

"Ah – great – pass it here, will you love?"

Laura handed the phone to Robbie with a puzzled look on her face.

"Hi Pet, any luck?" Robbie said into the phone

Laura was even more intrigued, she listened with interest to Robbie as she cleared the table of the final remnants of their lunch

"That's great – well done. Modern technology eh? And she says it's ok. . . Great. . . Oh. . .maybe nothing yet. . .I'll tell you all about it at the weekend eh? Ok love, see you then. . . yep, will do. . . Bye"

Robbie took the phone from his ear and tapped at the red hang up icon with his index finger before handing the phone back to Laura.

"That was our Lyn, doing me a favour" He said, his eyebrows raised and a smile on his face. "She's got hold of Tommy's sister for me. She's got her details and she's told her I want to get in touch in the next couple of days"

"Oh" said Laura, her eyes widening in surprise. "Well that's going to be a careful and odd conversation I suppose?"

"Aye, it won't be easy, telling someone they might or might not have a niece they never knew about who was abandoned at birth"

"I'll say" said Laura

"I need to do it though. I dunno; I can't let all this pass. Like when you saw Chrissy and you had to do something. I feel I should do it, for lots of reasons." He looked at Laura, suddenly worried it was a bad idea.

She smiled at him and went up behind him where he still sat on the kitchen chair and, putting her arms around him, kissed his cheek

"It's a monumental thing to have to tell someone; but I can't think of anyone else kinder or more thoughtful to do such a thing, Robbie." And she kissed him again.

Reassured, Robbie nodded with a smile. She was right, it would be a difficult conversation, but as he'd said, one he knew he had to take a risk with.

"How about we have a cup of tea and then go for that walk on the beach?"

"Sounds just the ticket"

"Good. I'll make the tea and wash up the dishes, you go and sit outside for a bit"

"Bloody hell, you doing the washing up without requesting my presence, I am honoured" He teased.

"Yes, well, don't get used to it, as soon as we're back home it's business as usual" Laura chuckled back and, with a final kiss to his cheek she went to put the kettle on.

Robbie stepped out into the garden. It was a glorious day and suddenly he felt glad to be alive. A seagull soared across the blue sky above him and the sun felt warm on his face. He sighed, lamenting again over how different their holiday had turned out to how it should have done. He sat down on the bench and carefully stretched his legs out. He was still a little sore but the painkiller he'd taken earlier seemed to be taking the edge off the aches in his ribs and back. The sun beamed down onto his face and he tentatively touched the bruising near his eye. Even that didn't feel as bad as it had done. Sparrows whirred up and down the little garden path and Robbie watched them as they bathed in the dust. From inside the cottage he could hear Laura clearing up the lunch things and a calm feeling of contentment seemed to settle over him. Despite what had transpired, things were good. Things were good because he had Laura. He smiled to himself at this thought and sighed again, this time it was a long and contented one.

Inside the cottage Laura put the lunch things away and tidied up the counter. They were due to leave the next day and she, like Robbie, bemoaned the fact that their holiday had been not exactly as they had planned. She was wondering if they could perhaps talk to the owner and book it again for later in the year, maybe for a festive getaway perhaps, when she heard her phone buzzing and chiming once again. She went over to the kitchen table where Robbie had left it earlier. She could see the number on the display and it wasn't one she recognised. With a slight frown she picked up the call.

"Hello?" She said, and waited for the caller to answer

"Oh Hello" She said after the caller spoke, a smile started to spread across her face and she looked towards the garden where Robbie was sitting outside.

"How are you?" She asked the caller and she stepped into the garden and over to where Robbie was sitting on the bench

"Yes he's fine, don't worry, he's here, you can ask him yourself. . . You're welcome." Laura handed the phone to Robbie "It's Pat" She said in a whisper, her eyes smiling at him as she handed the mobile over. Laura watched for a moment as she saw Robbie's surprise and then delight as he put the phone to his ear.

"Hello son" Robbie said into the phone, a smile breaking across his face "how are you? . . Well I suppose so. . .aye, I'm fine, thanks. . . I know. I scared myself. . . Well, don't you worry about your old dad eh? . . . Yeah, me too" he took Laura's hand "I'm glad she's here to look after me too" Laura squeezed Robbie's hand as he continued to talk to his son.

"Listen, we were only talking then other day, it's high time we came out to see you sometime. . ."

Laura smiled as Robbie chatted to Pat. Lyn had obviously been in touch with her brother and maybe it had been the opportunity for Pat to find some levelled ground to repair his relationship with his father.

From Robbie's side of the conversation things sounded like they were already patched up. Maybe something good had come of the near-death experience Robbie had been through. Laura shuddered suddenly as she recalled in her head the instance when Robbie had been pulled under the waves, and then the agonizing wait for him to be rescued and then the waiting again to know if he was alive and if so in what state. She pushed the thought form her head and concentrated on the feel of Robbie's hand in hers. It helped, and she squeezed it again before letting it go, smiling at him as he carried on talking to Pat, and went back into the kitchen to make some tea.

Not long later, after a cup of tea and with the call to his son finished, Robbie and Laura took a walk down to the beach.


	22. Chapter 22 On A Bluer Ocean

**AN: Thanks everyone for continuing to read. This story is now coming to an end – but not quite yet, there's still a little left. I hope you are all still well and safe and I thank you for reading as it keeps me writing at this very odd time.**

**ML xx**

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It was a flawless late summer day as Robbie and Laura made their way down to the bay. The sky was cloudless, a perfect rich cerulean blue and the sun was bright and strong but not too overpowering. A very faint breeze from the sea made things even more pleasant. It was mid-afternoon and although there were lots of people walking along the beach, there was plenty of space for it to seem to Robbie and Laura that they had a wide area of the beach to themselves.

Holding hands, they walked along the long wide sands that made up Robin Hood's Bay. The air felt fresh and crystal clear and the sea was impeccably calm and it seemed unreal to them both that it was the same body of water from the day before. As they walked Robbie pointed out various seabirds to Laura; a cormorant flying over the surface of the water, sandpipers running together in small comical groups along the shoreline and oystercatchers with their striking orange beaks looking for food at the water's edge.

They walked slowly, enjoying the fresh air and sunshine and the feel of the wet sand, solid but shifting underfoot. The sea had started to go out and they walked down to the tideline as they walked up the long stretch of beach.

Robbie looked at Laura as they walked. She seemed a little tired but that was to be expected; after all, she'd spent most of the night looking after him.

He squeezed her hand "Are you alright?" He said softly as she looked up to him. "I mean, what with everything you told me earlier" His eyes were watchful as if trying to gauge her reaction before she spoke.

She raised a smile for him and to temper his concern

"I'm fine, Robbie." She said. She looked at him, and saw his eyes were searching hers to verify she was telling the truth.

"Obviously it's brought things back." She said. "But we're here _now_, not in the past."

She sighed "Anyway, people go through much worse. I got away relatively unscathed. Many women have similar stories, some worse, some not so worse, but we all have a story, whether we think we have or not. Seeing Rex made me realise I had that story, along with others, in my life"

Robbie alarmed at her admission started to speak but she cut him off, to reassure him.

"I mean, it's not just the obvious things, the big things, it can be the small things, the offhand comments, the gestures, the getting overlooked. All these things chip away at us. Women have had to deal with it for eons, for the most part I know how to handle it, to side step it, to toss it to one side; god knows I've had to put up with it in my career since the start. _I'm_ Ok. It's Chrissy and Rose I'm thinking of now. But I'm ok, really. I promise" And she squeezed Robbie's hand to reassure him. He knew she was speaking from the heart and he smiled back at her and nodded in silent acknowledgement of her strength.

They strolled on, both in contemplative silence for a while, the gentle breeze tousling Laura's hair and Robbie looked at her as they walked and never had he felt so much love for her. She was right, they were here now, whatever had happened or hadn't happened in the past to either of them. Now was all they had, along with being together, and that was enough.

The storm had brought driftwood and a jumble of maritime rubbish onto the beach. Seaweed, cuttlefish bones, fishing nets and the odd forlorn stranded jellyfish lay scattered along the shoreline in an untidy but clear tide line. There was plenty of faded plastic and bottles amongst the shells and black drifts of heavier sand and pebbles. Hand in hand Robbie and Laura walked idly and slowly up the beach, following closely to the line of dark sand and debris that stretched ahead like an embroidered ribbon.

"Robbie look! Is that jet?" Laura exclaimed, letting go of Robbie's hand so she could stoop down to the sand.

"Looks like it might be, let's see"

Robbie took the small black lump in his hand. It was almost weightless and looked like a black piece of wood, a small part of the corner had sheared away to reveal a shiny mirror-like pure black.

"I reckon it is" he said with a grin.

"And what about this? It looks like a bit of sea glass, part of a brown beer bottle but it can't be, it's so light. She turned the scrap of material over in her palm. Do you think it could be amber?"

Laura handed Robbie another small piece of material from the tideline. He looked at it closely

"I think it could be. Hey that's quite a find y'know? Must be the storm that churned it all up, and now it's all settled, I think you've found some treasure there" He said and watched as Laura carefully put the two rough gemstones into a spare tissue and put them into her jacket pocket. She smiled at him and took his hand again and they continued to walk along the beach.

The mid-afternoon sun was glorious and under the warm blue sky Robbie and Laura came upon an old broken up boat that had been washed up on the beach. It was in half but it was enough to give them a comfortable back rest as they sat in the soft dry sand that had escaped the tide. Robbie sat down first and then Laura joined him and he pulled her up to him, his arms going around her in a comforting embrace. She settled back into his arms, being careful not to push too much against his ribs. He'd had more painkillers but she could tell the pain was beginning to lessen for him. His eye was still bruised however, a reminder to her of Rex and the events that precluded his near drowning.

She sighed. It would take a while to turn the volume down on that particular set of recollections. She felt him nuzzle his face into her hair and then felt a soft kiss on her cheek and she took his hand and lacing his fingers between hers, kissed it to return the affection.

"How are you feeling?" Laura asked, tilting her head back towards his. She was confident that Robbie was over the worst, he was certainly not in any danger anymore, but his bruises would be painful for a while and she worried about the impact of the rescue might have on his mind not just his body. Despite being well seasoned in dealing with close shaves, he wasn't immune and it was likely he might have flashbacks at some point.

"Actually, I feel ok, love" He said, his voice soft and close to her ear. He wasn't lying. The experience seemed to have made him feel aware of how precious things were, how glad he was to have Laura in his life. This thought brought back his guilt about New Zealand. Now the dust had settled a little, he needed to talk to her about it, and put the whole thing to rest, for both of them.

"It has made me think about a few things though" He said

"Oh?" Laura asked and there was a long pause from Robbie before he answered

"I need to know; Laura. New Zealand. . ."

"Robbie we've been through this before, we don't need to dwell on it again, it's not important now"

"Yes, it is, Laura." Robbie's voice was gentle but emphatic. "I need to know. How close I was . . .to losing you. I know I was. I need you to tell me"

Laura looked down at their intertwined hands. She didn't want to go over old ground, but he was right, he had nearly lost her. Maybe it was right to talk about it. Gently she unlaced their fingers and she turned in his arms so she could look at him.

Robbie looked back at her, holding her steady in his arms as well as his gaze. Her face was serious but she took his hand again, and her fingers suddenly felt small in his. They'd never really talked about it, not properly. At the time he had told her how sorry he was, that he would make it up to her and it had been a case _of least said soonest mended_. But he'd known, deep down how much he'd hurt her in that one instant of his own blind panic. He put his hand over hers, a silent encouragement for her to talk truthfully to him.

"I thought. . ." she took a deep breath, before she continued, and he heard the tightness in it that often precluded emotion.

"I wasn't sure if I was going to come back. From New Zealand. I don't do things by halves, Robbie, you know that. When you came to me in the in the lab that day, when I was having a last look round before going home, my whole career seemed to flash by me. I thought this has all been a waste of time, of my life, everything I'd done, everything I've not done, everything I'd accomplished in my career. None of it mattered. All I wanted was to spend time with you, just the two of us, finally away from work, after all those years of late nights, long shifts, all the difficult cases, all the stress, I just couldn't understand why you wanted the opposite. . ."

She didn't look at Robbie, she feared she would break down and cry if she did. In turn, Robbie looked down to the sands, a seemingly infinite number of grains, all different, that could never be counted and he felt his heart shrink with what she was telling him.

"I thought I wasn't enough for you." Laura continued, her voice quiet and distant. "I felt that perhaps if things hadn't worked out like they had, if you'd still had Val, or even someone else, if you'd been in another relationship or been married to someone would you have still not gone?"

Robbie felt his stomach flip at her confession. He was appalled at her notion

"No, of course not love." He said and Laura heard the anguish in his voice "Nothing could be _further_ from the truth"

Despite the desperation of his defence she continued, her voice still conveying her upset

"It felt like the same pattern again. Getting so close to someone, loving them so much, thinking they were the one and only and then realising that actually, no, it is me. It's me. I'm the one that makes it all go wrong"

Robbie's face clouded again at her suggestion and he frowned.

"No, please, love, please don't ever think that; that could never, ever be true" He implored.

He felt awful that she would even think such a thing. "Listen" He said, lifting her face to his so he could see her eyes

"After Val died, work became the focus. And in a way I suppose work became a family to me in a roundabout way - you and Hathaway - you both had my back, but especially you. You were always there for me, you became part of my life, through work and then more so when we got together, and suddenly, when I felt that Moody was going to ditch me it all felt like everything was about to crumble apart, if I couldn't work then what else would I do?" He looked desperately at Laura, hoping he was conveying to her how he felt.

"At the time, in my head, it felt that you would understand. You're a workaholic like I am, you know what it's like, when you get consumed and driven by a case, by work. It was like I was talking to someone who would understand but I got it all wrong, love. I took you for granted. I didn't stop to think about you or how you might feel hurt at what I was saying, but you treated me with such kindness even after what I'd said and what it might mean for you and you forgave me, straight away, and I can never ever repay you enough for that"

At Robbie's explanation, Laura felt a relief. He had just been caught in the headlights, that day when he'd told her he wasn't going to go with her to New Zealand. And in the end he'd not stayed. He hadn't chosen work over her and hearing him finally talk about it, especially now, lifted a huge weight from her. She looked at him, there was a moisture in his eyes that she very rarely saw, a counter weight of emotion that matched how she felt. He suddenly grasped her hand in both of his.

"Listen, I need to say this. . ." He said. And he took a deep breath, his eyes still shining with an emotion that was clearly evident to how he was feeling.

Laura was taken aback by the force of his action

"I can't believe I never. . .that I don't. . ." Robbie continued, almost stuttering over his words "I. . . I never really. . . bloody hell! . . .even after going half the way the world. . ."

"What Robbie? You're scaring me"

He looked at her, a smile permeating the emotional anguish on his face "No" He seeked to assure her "No, its's nothing bad"

"What?" She frowned at him; her hand still grasped between his.

He looked at her, his eyes locking with hers as he spoke again, this time his voice was steady.

"I'm not very good at saying important thing sometimes. But I need you to know. . . Just how much I love you. _Absolutely_ love you, so much. You mean the world to me, Laura and I never tell you enough."

Laura felt the pull of tears in her eyes and she smiled at him, trying hard not to let it tip her into a sob of emotion. There had been enough tears, good and bad in the last 24 hours. With teardrops threatening her composure she heard herself trying to staunch them with a small laugh of relief.

"Come here" She said, her arms reaching for him. "You know I feel the same, you big softie. I love you too, more than I could ever put into words" Now the tears did come. Verbalising how she felt pushed her over the edge and big teardrops tumbled happily down her cheeks. Smiling Robbie pulled her into his arms and against his chest he felt her sobbing. Tears shone in his eyes too. He held her for a few minutes while she regained her composure. She took a hankie out of her jacket pocket and dried her eyes and blew her nose. He looked down at her and kissed her, softly on the lips and then on her cheek which was still wet with more tears. He brushed a lock of hair from her eyes and smiled tenderly at her.

"Listen, if I died now, I'd be happy." He said, his voice soft and near "Getting dragged under those waves made me realise that. So anything else with you is a gift, a bonus. I thought I'd never see you or the kids again. I knew I'd never properly told you how much I do love you. I tell the kids all the time, how special they are to me in my life, after Val it became important to tell them all the time but I take you for granted sometimes, because you've always been there for me, unconditionally, it made it easy to take things for granted. I won't let that happen anymore, Laura. I want you to know and understand that. I don't want to ever be without you. I just want you to know that."

Although her tears had stopped Laura was still emotional and his continued words of devotion hit her, right in her heart. She dabbed at her eyes again, and found her composure returning a little. She smiled at him, her eyes still moist with emotion.

"You're not going to ask me to marry me you are you?" She said with a small dose of her usual cheek she often still managed to proffer to him at times like these.

He smiled, looking down at her, his eyes full of pure affection at her approach to the situation

"No" He chuckled gently "I've already got one black eye. I don't want another" She laughed back softly at his words but he thought he saw something else in her eyes, something he couldn't quite place.

"Anyway" He continued "you'd only say no" and despite the admission he smiled at her, his eyes and face full of yet more love and affection towards her.

"You sure about that?" She said, looking him in the eye. Through her trademark cheeky smile Robbie thought he saw something else there that made him question the playfulness of the exchange. Robbie's smile slipped slightly and he frowned a little in confusion.

"Maybe you should try it sometime" She said and her gaze locked on his and he felt a strange intensity from her, as if she was trying to instill something to him, from her heart. And she pulled herself back into his arms and he held her again for a while, feeling a little bemused at her words.

After a while she moved from their embrace and stood up.

"Come on" She said, standing up. "let go down to the sea". She gave him a long tender smile and then turned before walking slowly towards the sea. Robbie stood up and watched her as she went for a moment before catching her up, and hand in hand they both made their way towards the water.

Robbie was still a little baffled. _Maybe you should try it sometime_. What had she meant by that? He looked at her in puzzlement as they dodged debris, shallow puddles of seawater and lugworm casts as they picked their way down to where the sea met the rippled wet sands.

At the water's edge they both looked out to a clear horizon. There were a few fishing boats on the almost mirror flat surface of the water, terns and gulls flew above their heads and the waves lapped lazily up towards their shoes as they followed the water as it slowly went further out into the bay.

Coming to a stop at the tide's edge, Robbie pulled Laura into an embrace from behind and pressed a kiss into her hair and then another one behind her ear. It was one of his favourite places to kiss her and he knew she loved it when he did so. She grasped his arms and squeezed gently in response, enjoying the feel of him encompassing her.

They looked out to the horizon for a few minutes and then Laura felt Robbie kiss her again, then his voice, quiet in her ear.

"I wish I could make love to you, here on the beach" He said

"Robbie!" She exclaimed, laughing turning in his embrace "You never say things like that!"

He chuckled back at her reaction "I know. I told you. Getting half drowned does things to a man"

"Well, I think you've had enough notoriety in the past twenty-four hours without adding indecent exposure to the mix" She said and they laughed again, together. Laura looked at Robbie, an intense expression full of unabashed desire on her face, her hand on his chest

"You can't make love to me here but you can at the cottage. Let's go back soon." She said in a low voice

And she kissed him with an intensity that took his breath away and left him feeling a little stunned.

"We can go in the hot tub afterwards and drink that champagne" She added with just the slightest hint of a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

Smiling back at her Robbie pulled her to him "I'm not going to argue with any of that" He said and they both laughed again, softly and still holding each other for a few minutes before Laura took Robbie's hand and led them both back towards the way they'd come

In the warm sunshine and under a still flawless heavenly blue sky they made their way back along the beach. Robbie squeezed Laura's hand gently. She looked up at him, sensing he was going to speak

"Anyway _Miss-I'm-not-that-bothered-about-hot-tubs_ you've changed your tune." He said, and it was his turn to sport a cheeky smile.

"Well it's more for you and your sore muscles and bruising, Robbie."

"Alright, Doctor, whatever you say." And he gave her a wink.

They made their way back along the beach and as they walked close to the cliffs Robbie told Laura about the different sea birds they kept seeing and that there was a nature reserve down the coast that if they'd been staying a bit longer would have been worth a visit.

"You get seals and puffins there" He said and Laura smiled as he told her about the reserve and the cliffs where the seabirds nested.

"Maybe we can come again, Robbie and have another holiday here, without the drama we've had this time?" She said

"It's an idea, that's for sure" he said agreeing with her sentiment as they walked now to the sandy path that would take them though the little hamlet and back up to the holiday cottage.

"Did you know" Robbie continued "That puffins mate for life?"

"No" Said Laura, looking at him, her eyebrows raised in interest

"Yeah. They find a mate and they stay together for life. And if one of them dies, the one left finds another puffin who's either lost a mate or hasn't found a match yet"

Laura smiled. She looked at Robbie. He was gazing down at her as they walked.

"Sounds to me that puffins have got it all worked out" She said and she gazed back at him, and then together they climbed the steep path to the road before joining the track that took them back to the cottage.


	23. Chapter 23 Against Tomorrow's Sky

**AN: Thanks everyone for your readership. I am finding distraction and escapism in writing during this awful time and I hope you are finding it in reading. This is a short chapter I just finished, there's more to come as soon as I can, the next part of this story will be in the form of a separate M rated bonus standalone chapter but rest assured I will also post the next non M chapter at the same time and as always, although you might miss out on sexy fluff, you won't need to read the M story to follow this adventure as it will continue seamlessly in the next chapter.**

**I hope you and your loved ones are safe and well.**

**all the best for now ML x**

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The late afternoon sunshine bathed the holiday cottage in a golden warm glow as hand in hand Robbie and Laura approached the cottage from the dirt track that lead up from the road.

As they reached the entrance, Laura let go of Robbie's hand and unlocked the door to let them in. In the little porch they took their shoes off and then in a role reversal to their usual ritual, Laura helped Robbie with his jacket, easing it carefully over his arms, being careful not to aggravate his injuries, before hanging it up onto the peg rack by the door.

She turned and Robbie was waiting, to help her with her jacket. She didn't need help, ever, with her coat or jacket or whatever she wore, but if he was there when she happened to take it off or put it on, he always helped her. She loved it, it was a secret pleasure that transcended gentlemanly mores and had become just a sweet and caring gesture that meant so much more than its action and result. Robbie took her jacket and hung it on the peg next to his. As he turned, Laura was there in front of him, near, and her hands gently went up to him and she placed them carefully on his chest, aware of his injuries at all times, transferring the care she felt for him through her fingertips.

Robbie looked down at her, smiling at her gentle touch. She looked up at him and her eyes were shining with love for him. Slowly he bent his head forward to kiss her, a soft and tender kiss on the lips that she returned with equal devotion. His hands went to her back and as their kiss slowly deepened, Laura's hands found their way onto Robbie's back.

As her hands smoothed over his back she felt him wince slightly and although her hands weren't near his bruises she stopped kissing him, concern in her eyes as she pulled back from him

"Are you ok? Your bruises, Robbie, I don't want to hurt you"

"You could never hurt me" he said shaking his head slightly, looking down at her with a sweet smile and feeling the full warmth of her concern "Well, maybe when you give me one of your thumpings, when I mess up" he added with a raised eyebrow and a slightly cheeky but still affectionate smile.

She laughed softly. She did thump him sometimes, out of sheer frustration. "Well in that case you're safe for now" She said with a soft reproachful look on her face. And then her face became concerned again. "Where's the pain, Robbie, is it bad?"

"I'm ok" He said. "It's just my ribs are still a bit sore and it's not quite time for another tablet yet"

He smiled sweetly at her "I'm sure you can distract me until then, though"

She smiled back at him, her eyes full of love for him and he bent forward, his hands seeking out hers as they kissed. When they broke apart, she smiled again, searching his eyes with a slightly bashful look that he knew so well, and squeezing his hands gently, she led him into the bedroom.


	24. Chapter 24 Champagne Eyes

**AN: If you are a fan of M stories you can read my bonus chapter that precedes this one. It's called In Gardens All Misty Wet With Rain. Thanks again for reading and although I know pretty much how this story ends, I am struck by Hobsonfan's observance that Laura's attitude to marriage is "evolving" so this may have a bearing on a few things that I may or may not follow through – possibly. What do you all think?**

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Lying on his back on the bed, Robbie looked up to the sloping ceiling of the bedroom and the large Velux window. Swallows swooped high and appeared small in the rectangle of blue framed by the skylight and the occasional gull soared gracefully across the soft turquoise sky outside. Through the shutters and the windows he could hear the birds in the garden, chirping loudly in groups to each other.

It was now early evening. Robbie wondered what time it was exactly and if he might have another painkiller for his ribs although the pain was now much better than it had been and he could feel that things were starting to heal. He was also hungry and he was sure Laura must be too. He looked down at her, she was tucked up to his side, his arm around her while his hand gently stroked her hair.

Robbie smiled as he watched her doze. He was unashamed to feel a certain kind of masculine pride. With Laura lying next to him after their love making, she'd told him how much she loved him and all but collapsed in his arms and across his chest. She'd still managed to avoid his bruises even in her exhaustion. _That is love_ he thought to himself with a proud smile. As she lay dozing, he was very much awake. His thoughts wandered to what she'd said on the beach earlier.

_Maybe you should try it sometime_.

There had been no ambiguity from her but still he was confused. He knew Laura didn't approve of marriage. It wasn't because of any commitment issues; it was purely in principle. Her words, however, seemed to contradict her beliefs. It was odd, because it wasn't like Laura to skirt around issues. If she meant something, she usually made it very clear. He remained puzzled but he felt an odd excitement and her words echoed again in his head as he looked down at her sleeping form next to him.

Laura wasn't asleep. She had her eyes closed but she was fully and blissfully aware of being snuggled up next to Robbie. She loved the time spent after making love. He always held her close, tender kisses to her face and always asked her if she was alright. This both melted her heart and amused her at the same time, for it was obvious that she was always "alright" but he still felt compelled to ask.

When she'd been younger, she might have convinced herself this attitude was old fashioned but now, it was something she craved and cherished. After numerous failed relationships and a string of one-night stands that had drifted into nothing she knew that such behaviour was to do with the person, not through any gentlemanly cliché. Simply, he was lovely. She had always known Robbie was an inherently kind man but nothing had prepared her for how unbelievably sweet he was, just to her, when they were alone. Or how passionate. The one intensified the other in a feedback loop of passion and tenderness. She could lay like this for hours, knowing these things and just feeling him close, with nothing else required.

After a while Robbie felt Laura stir and felt her hand on his chest. He asked her if she was ok and if she wanted anything and that maybe they should have something to eat. She agreed and he got up off the bed and pulled his pants and jeans on and then buttoned up his shirt.

"Don't get cold, pet" he said and covered her with the woolen blanket she had retrieved from the car the night before. Laura smiled to herself, basking in this very rare term of endearment from him. He used it all the time to his daughter or to those in his charge that were upset or vulnerable, but seldom did it slip out to her. She loved that it demonstrated a basic and unforced need to care for and protect others and when he used it without thinking in regard to her, secretly her heart would swell a little.

"I won't" she said, smiling up at him and pulling the blanket over her nakedness.

"How about after we've had a bite to eat we have a dip in the hot tub and a glass of bubbly eh?" Robbie said, his face bright with a relaxed excitement at his suggestion.

"Sounds wonderful" She replied and watched as he nodded and then disappeared through the bedroom door and into the kitchen.

Laura yawned lazily as she pulled the blanket over herself. Her body felt relaxed, wondrously so, to a point she couldn't ever recall feeling like this. She still felt the warm afterglow of their love making mixed with the emotions they'd shared earlier on the beach along with the previous day's events. She thought back to when she was younger, all the feelings of young fresh love seemed dull and without volume compared to what she felt now. She could hear Robbie clinking plates and cutlery in the kitchen and after a few more minutes she threw the blanket off herself and got up from the bed before putting on a bathrobe and making her way into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Laura was impressed to find that Robbie had laid out a veritable feast made up from the contents of the fridge. They'd bought various supplies earlier in the week and along with the cheese and bread she'd bought that morning there was quite a spread on offer. She realised she was famished. Robbie had opened the champagne and as she sat down, he poured her a glass.

"Don't know about you, but I worked up quite a thirst" He said with a wink. He had a glass too but mixed his champagne with orange juice.

She chuckled softly at his words as she took the glass from him. She sipped at the champagne. It was deliciously cold. It was a good one, dry and biscuity and it was well chilled. Laura took another long sip before tucking in, along with Robbie, into the food.

They chatted as they ate, deciding what time they should leave the next day and that Laura would do some of the driving if need be. They discussed Jack's coming visit over the weekend and Laura's return to work the following Monday. After their food had settled Robbie wandered into the garden and had a look at the hot tub. It was already switched on from the engineer's visit and as Robbie moved aside the cover he dipped his hand into the water and felt it was lovely and warm. He smiled, this would be just the ticket for his aches and pains. He'd just taken another painkiller after eating but he could tell that it would probably be the last one he needed. Making love with Laura had relaxed his body and now a dip in a hot tub with her was the perfect thing to cap off his recovery as well as the evening.

They took the champagne out with them into the garden and headed to the hot tub. Robbie got in first then held out a hand for Laura as she climbed in, discarding her bathrobe as she did so. The evening was still warm and pleasant, with only a very slight chill at the edge of the light breeze that drifted through the night air. Bats flitted about the darkening sky and the odd seagull flew over the garden on a night sortie. As the night wore on the temperature began to drop but in the hot tub, Laura and Robbie were relaxing in the warm water, submerged up to their shoulders.

"Here" Said Robbie taking Laura's glass and replenishing it with champagne "let me top you up, there's a bit left, I think I'll stick to Buck's Fizz though. This is the life, eh?" He said to Laura touching his glass to hers with a grin that told her he was genuinely thrilled at the proceedings.

"It's a shame we'll only get to do this once though" he sighed.

"Another reason to come back for a proper holiday. Spend some more time, see the seals and puffins and have the fish and chips were should have had yesterday in Whitby" Said Laura

"Aye, and maybe we can find another ring" Robbie said, frowning and a little tight lipped at the reminder that the purchase he'd made the day before had been lost to the sea.

"Well that would be an idea too" Laura replied, smiling ahead and avoiding his gaze. And as she took another sip of her champagne, he looked at her closely, her words from earlier on the beach still calling in his head.

She put her glass down on the decking behind them and turned to look at him "Despite everything, I've had a wonderful time, Robbie"

"Me too; despite everything" and he kissed her, taking her hand in his under the water. Laura kissed him back, savouring the feel of him next to her in the water, her hand went to his leg under the water and she began to run her hand up his thigh when suddenly there was a rumbling from under the hot tub.

"Oh!" Cried Laura laughing as jets of bubbles issued rapidly forth from the base and sides of the tub, churning the water and gently pummeling their bodies.

Robbie laughed back with her, unbeknownst to Laura he had found the switch on the side of the tub to activate the bubble jet. They let the timer on the bubbles run out, both still laughing and enjoying the feeling and the sheer ridiculous luxury of the hot tub.

The night sky darkened and the stars began to prick brightly through the blackness as it got later into the night. Laura filled her glass up again twice. The alcohol relaxed her body and now she knew everything was alright, and that Robbie was safe and that hopefully there would be some justice for Chrissy and rose, she had allowed the relief and the fatigue to wash over her. Robbie stuck to his Bucks Fizz and after an hour enjoying the warmth and relaxation of the hot tub, they decided to call it a night. The journey back to Oxford the next day would take some time and they both needed a good rest.

Robbie climbed out of the tub, wrapped himself in a towel and then offered his hand to help Laura out.

"Are you alright, Love?" He asked her as she stepped out of the tub. She was a little drunk and had got a bit tearful. She could usually hold her drink well but the events of the day had wreaked havoc with her adrenaline levels and she was dead tired as well as emotional. The alcohol had hit her for six and Robbie could see tears in her eyes.

"Yes, I'm, well I'm just a little. . ." her voice trailed off

"Come here, it's all ok." Robbie said as he drew her close, wrapping her in her bathrobe and holding her tight. "You're my one and only Canny Lass, you know that, don't you?" he said softly

"I do." She said half laughing, half crying through her tears. "Oh God, I thought I'd lost you Robbie" and she tried to hold back a sob but didn't succeed.

"Sssh, hey, it's ok" He soothed her and he could feel warm tears running down her face. "I'm still here, eh? you're stuck with me I'm afraid"

"I always want to be stuck with you, Robbie" She said, looking up to him through her tears. He gazed down at her, rubbing her back through the robe to help dry her as well as reassure her. Her eyes were glassy with emotion, fatigue and champagne.

"And you" She continued, her voice wavering with emotion and the effects of the champagne, "you're my canny lad, or whatever it is you say"

"That's good to know" he said with a chuckle, amused to hear her say a familiar saying in her own way. But he saw the affection in her eyes despite the tired drunkenness. And he kissed her forehead and hugged her close. They were both dead tired and not long after headed to bed.

Robbie put Laura into bed first then he cleaned his teeth and joined her. She had dropped off to sleep straight away and he was relieved, she was exhausted, much more than he was. He pulled her softly into his arms and in her slumber, she murmured something and he placed a soft kiss onto her cheek before following her into a deep and restful sleep.


	25. Chapter 25 The Prophecy

**AN: Hi everyone. I hope you are all well and your loved ones too. Things are still strange but it's amazing how we can find the reserve to adapt and I hope you are all coping with everything that's ongoing in these times. This story is nearly done, just another chapter to post and then hopefully I have at least one more story in the pipeline, only a short one so far, but it pays to keep busy eh? Thanks all for reading and especially those of you who leave a message - it means a lot, more than you might think, to read your reviews and thoughts, so thank you!**

**ML x **

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The next morning dawned clear and bright as the day before, just a little bit cooler. Robbie and Laura rose early and after a relaxed breakfast packed up all their things ready for the journey home. They had both slept well and Robbie was surprised at how good he felt, considering everything, and was confident he could take on most of the driving. Despite drinking most of the champagne from the night before Laura also felt rested.

"Got everything?" Said Robbie as he loaded their bags into the boot of the car

"I think so" replied Laura as she reached up to get her jacket from the hook in the porch. Even though it was a pleasant sunny morning she felt a chill. Autumn obviously came a bit sooner this little bit further north. She put the jacket on and as a matter of habit dug her hands into the pockets, pulling out a handkerchief and an old parking voucher from their clifftop parking spot in Whitby. As she put the hankie back in her pocket and went to throw the ticket into the small bin in the porch, she suddenly stopped dead, plunging her hands into her jacket pockets again.

"Problem?" said Robbie, noticing her face had a slight frown on it.

"Yes" she said and continued to probe the pockets. "I can't believe this." She said

Robbie frowned

"What's up?" he questioned, thinking she had misplaced her keys or similar.

"The jet and amber pieces, Robbie; it would appear I've gone and lost them" And she looked at Robbie again, turning out the pockets of her jacket once more "It must have been when we were sitting by the old boat." She said with an irritated frown. "Oh for heaven's sake! First the ring and now this" she exclaimed with exasperation.

"Never mind" Said Robbie, putting a soothing hand on her shoulders "Obviously the sea wanted more back for not taking me eh?" He said with a smile, trying to say something to make her feel better.

Laura sighed. He was right and it was similar to what she had told him about losing the antique ring: it didn't really matter in the scheme of things. Even so, she had loved finding the rough precious gems on the beach, with Robbie by her side as she did so. The little bits of treasure from the sea had been an odd souvenir to a rather unforgettable few days.

"Come on" Said Robbie, squeezing her shoulder. "Let's get back home"

And with one last look around to check they'd not left anything, Robbie and Laura left the little cottage at Robin Hood's bay and were soon back on the road Oxford bound.

The journey home was trouble free, the day was pleasant and warm and the forecast on the radio as they drove home foretold of similar fine weather for the next few days. Laura looked out onto the late summer wayside grass verges. They were flanked with willowherb and teasel and dried meadowsweet. The heads of cow parsley and other summer flowers were now turning to dried relics of their former selves as the summer came to an end and autumn beckoned with its cooler nights, lingering and coming ever so sooner as each sunset passed.

Laura sighed again as the scenery sped by. Towns and villages and farmland all blurred into a sequence that was mesmerizing. Laura thought about her coming week. She didn't really want to go back to the lab but there was something soothing about the regularity of a working week. She needed some time to process everything and re-calibrate. But first Jack would come to stay and she knew Robbie was excited at the prospect. She was looking forward to it too. The little boy brought an air of excitement to the house, as well as a little bit of chaos but she loved Jack and she loved to see Robbie switch into a different mode when he was with his Grandson.

As they drove home Robbie was also thinking of his Grandson's visit. He loved the lad to bits and every second he spent with him was precious. But he also loved the fact that Laura enjoyed it too. She wasn't a children person, she was the first to admit that, but she seemed to have a knack with kids that appeared to be effortless and she always seemed to enjoy being with them. Early on in their relationship he had noticed that she treated children like adults, at least she didn't patronise them but instead talked to them and seemed to understand them and talk back to them on a level that seemed to bring out the best in them.

Robbie smiled to himself, Jack adored Laura almost to the point of obsession and sometimes he wondered if given the choice the lad would sometimes, in some circumstances, prefer Laura's company to his own, especially if they were in a museum or art gallery. He loved that she brought something new to the family's situation. Lyn had never held back about talking to Jack about Val and as he had grown up the boy had grasped, quite easily, in the innocent way that children often do, the concept that there was someone in the past that he would never know.

Jack arrived the next day and they had just enough time to get washing done and a shop in before he descended, full of boundless energy, into the house. Lyn and her partner were staying at a small country hotel just outside of the city, a treat paid for by Laura and Robbie and plans had been made to meet up for various trips out over the weekend which Robbie was looking forward to. For the time being, however, he was happy enough to just have Jack around in the house. It brought back lots of memories for him, of Val and the kids. Sometimes with those memories came a sadness, not so much for him these days, but for Val, that she could have never known this part of life and also for Jack, that her would never meet his grandmother.

Oxford on a Saturday was busy but Robbie, Laura and Jack went into town and spent some time in the museums and had lunch out. Later on, as a special treat Laura took Jack into the forensic lab so he could have a look around. He had recently shown an interest in Laura's job so she was keen to show him what went on, within reason. She showed him where all the forensic testing took place but stopped short of showing him a dead body, despite his enthusiasm to see everything. Back home he'd continued to quiz her, asking all manner of questions which delighted Robbie and he chuckled to himself as Laura answered them all in a way that Jack could understand, and Robbie in turn discovered a few things about her job that he'd previously not known. After a supper of pizza, Robbie put Jack to bed with promises of more adventures the next day and not long after Robbie and Laura went to bed themselves, both exhausted.

The next morning Robbie awoke early to find Laura's side of the bed empty. He yawned and wondered where she was and then realised that as an inherently early riser it was likely that she had gone downstairs with Jack for an early breakfast. He dozed for a while and then got up himself and had a quick wash and shave before getting dressed.

As he went down the stairs he could hear his grandson talking and laughing and as he entered into the living room he paused as he saw him and Laura on the sofa together, both still in their pyjamas and dressing gowns. Laura was talking clearly and softly to Jack and Robbie couldn't quite hear but he could see they had a book and were looking at it together. Laura had her arm round Jack and he was nestled up to her while they both leafed through the book together. Laura pointed at something in the book and said something to Jack and they both laughed. Through his laughter Jack carried on with his chatter while Laura nodded at what he was saying and smiling chatted back to him in encouraging tones.

Robbie watched them both from the doorway, his heart felt full of emotion and suddenly he was acutely aware of a tightness in his throat and a threat even of a tightness behind his eyes that precluded tears.

Sometimes it felt to Robbie that the past and the future and the present seemed to merge in one slipstream. He had often thought of this sort of moment, as the kids had grown and he and Val had invited the thought of grandkids into their future. As he stood there, he wondered how life could seem so randomly controlled, that he felt the same amount of love seeing his grandson with Laura as if he had seen him with Val. It was a bittersweet feeling. He had loved and lost Val. But now he loved Laura. What had been a long night of dark misery had passed into a new day, just as fresh and as exciting as the one that had precluded the nightmare of grief.

He swallowed down a tide of emotion that if not checked may have risen unbidden. And, as he stood there, watching his grandson and Laura, the gypsy's prophecy came back to him, like it often did at times where he was acutely aware of how events had turned out for his family. This time, he didn't just think of what the gypsy had said, he saw her, in full detail in his mind. He could see his younger self, standing on the beach at Scarborough, all those years ago. He was almost transported back to the moment.

It was a blisteringly hot day, his toes were hot just from the heat in the sand. He was with Tommy when the old gypsy woman had approached them, asking if they had any money in exchange for some lucky white heather and their fortune. The old woman was dressed in black and had a crocheted shawl and numerous bags on her person, she seemed weighted down. Robbie worried she must be hot in the heat of the day, although she didn't look hot or uncomfortable.

She asked Tommy first, if he had any money. He laughed and told her yes but _she_ wasn't getting any. Robbie thought this a bit harsh, and he looked at the woman who seemed unfazed by Tommy's response. She asked him again, telling him her heather would bring him good luck. _I make my own luck_ he had said to her. She asked again, a third and final time and now Tommy became annoyed, telling her to stop bothering him.

At this point Robbie felt a chill, even on the hottest day of the year, with the sun blazing down, he saw the gypsy woman's face as she told Tommy to stay away from the water. And when he had told her to get lost, she had repeated her words and then told him he would always stay in Scarborough. And Robbie had felt a sickening twist of unease deep inside, chilling him to the bone. Tommy had laughed at the old woman and, swearing at her again had walked off leaving her with Robbie. She looked at him, her eyes bright like stars and almost timeless in her wrinkled old face. Robbie had still felt a deep sense of unease but he felt bad for the old woman, she was only trying to get a bit of money after all. She asked him for some money, like she had Tommy, but unlike Tommy, Robbie didn't tell her to get lost.

Robbie frowned at the vividness of the memory, almost a vision, crystal clear in its clarity. He remembered clearly what had happened next, as if it had been the day before.

He'd not had much money but he'd given her a couple of coins. She had tried to push a sprig of white heather into his hand. He had refused and told her to keep the little bunch of heather for someone else but to keep the money. For a few moments she had regarded him with her clear almost unnerving gaze and she had searched his face, as if witnessing something that only she could see.

"Tha'rt got a kind face and a good soul, lad" The old woman had finally said, her voice heavy with an accent and dialect of the old northern hills she inhabited "and if bad things happen, as they will, I can sithee living a long life, and a long long time from now I see a grandchild around you, and thart wi' the woman you love".

Even at the time Robbie had wondered if the old woman was really seeing his future. He had always remembered this exchange and when he had met and married Val it came back to him, and again when his children were born. He thought of it occasionally as family life progressed through the years, thinking that the old woman had indeed seen his future, he felt it would become true, and when Tommy had died by drowning he thought it even moreso.

But then Val had died. After his loss he often thought of the gypsy's prophecy, with a sour bitterness at her words. Superstitious nonsense, damaging and deceitful. She had preyed on him, taking advantage of him and feeding him a lie for just a few pence. And he had hated each recollection of her words and it seemed to ring in his head often and after Val's death he felt stupid. How arrogant to think that his life would unfold perfectly. _Be careful of what you wish for_ Morse had once said to him _There__'__s always a price to pay._

But now, looking at the scene in front of him, he realised the old woman's prophecy was true.

Here, right in front of his eyes he was looking at the old woman's vision. He had always thought the vision was of him and Val. But now he knew the truth.

It wasn't Val in the gypsy's vision, it was Laura.

"Grandad! We had a French breakfast with hot chocolate!" His Grandson's excited voice permeated Robbie's vision of the encounter on the beach.

"We left some in the pan for you, shall I get it for you?!" Jack continued with excitement at the prospect.

Robbie was was suddenly and acutely aware of the scene in front of him. He smiled at his grandson.

"Aye, go on then, you go and get a mug from the cupboard and I'll be there in a sec and we'll get it together, eh?"

Jack sprang from the sofa and raced into the kitchen leaving Laura with the book they had been looking at. Robbie went over to her and putting a hand on her shoulder bent down to kiss her.

She didn't notice a rim of silver moisture in his eyes but instead she saw his smile and she knew he was happy to see her spending time with Jack. She smiled back at him.

"There's a cross-ant too Granddad!" His grandson shouted excitedly from the kitchen.

"Oh, tray bee-en!" Robbie shouted and Laura laughed at Robbie's usual non effort at foreign pronunciation. He laughed back, loving her amusement at his expense.

"I'll make some coffee shall I?" He said

"Yes please" Laura replied, getting up from the sofa "I'll be back in a minute" and she kissed him again before going upstairs.

In the Kitchen Robbie filled his and his Grandson's mug with the remainder of the cocoa that was left in the pan then he made a pot of coffee.

He sat down at the table while Jack jabbered on excitedly about the book he'd been reading with Laura.

"You cheeky Lad" he said to his Grandson as Robbie discovered that the book was about fossils and dinosaurs and that Robbie had been the butt of a joke regarding the age of such things. "Where do you get that sass from eh?" Robbie continued, laughing as his grandson giggled uncontrollably at the joke.

Upstairs Laura pulled a brush through her hair and quickly got dressed. It was a different routine having a small boy in the house and she found herself accommodating his care without even thinking. She smiled to herself, she enjoyed spending time with Jack but was also unashamedly glad that she could hand him back to his parents after a few hours. It was exhausting and rewarding playing the role she'd slipped into with Jack but after a weekend with him she was openly glad to go back to work for a rest. She smiled to herself, she could hear Robbie and Jack even from this part of the house as they chatted in the kitchen.

Earlier that morning she'd awoken before the alarm. She'd lain for a while listening to the morning's sounds of cars in the street and the odd bit of bird chatter. As she awoke fully she heard soft footsteps down the hall. Jack had awoken early too and after a few seconds she saw a small hand and then a face appear around the bedroom door that had been left ajar. Sitting up, she told him to come in quietly, he did so, and they whispered about breakfast and then listened to Robbie snoring which had amused them both.

Laura had then taken the boy downstairs and they'd made breakfast together, with Laura showing him how to make real hot chocolate from cocoa powder while she told him about the different breakfasts you could have around the world which'd had Jack entranced. After that they'd sat on the sofa reading a book until Robbie had appeared.

As she headed back down the stairs into the living room she could hear talking. She paused before heading into the kitchen and dining space. She was out of sight and smiled as she overheard the conversation between Robbie and his grandson.

"Laura's a Doctor, isn't she Granddad?"

"Yes she is"

"She's very clever"

"That she is"

"I love Laura"

"ah, that's a nice thing to say Jack" said Robbie

"Do you love Laura?"

"I do, very much so, and I love you too, and your Mam and Dad and Uncle Pat"

"Mum said you were sad for a long time but now you're happy"

"Y'mam's right"

"Mum's mum died, didn't she?" Jack looked up at Robbie with bright eyes, watchful of Robbie's face, not quite understanding what the situation fully meant but understanding enough to know it was something important. Robbie frowned to himself briefly before looking down at his grandson with a sad smile

"Yes, she did"

"Did that make you sad?"

"Yes, it did"

"but you're not sad anymore? "

"No; I'm not sad anymore"

"Did you go to school with Laura?"

Robbie laughed softly at his grandson's question. "No" He said "But we work together, which is a bit like grown up school I suppose"

"Is Laura your wife?"

"No, she's not my wife"

"Why?"

Just then Laura came into the room

"Oh" Said Robbie _Saved by the bell _He thought to himself. "Just in time for coffee" He said.

Laura looked at Robbie with a smile but also a strange expression on her face as she poured herself some coffee. Robbie wasn't sure if she'd overheard his conversation with Jack, but one thing was for certain, trying to explain to a young boy the complexities of a modern relationship was sometimes just past his mark.

Later on, they went into Oxford and met with Lyn and Jack's Dad and spent the rest of the day in the city. As usual for Robbie the time seemed to fly by and before he knew it his family were headed back to Manchester, albeit with plans already lined up for Jack's next trip to Oxford.

Back at home in the evening, Robbie tidied up while Laura prepared her bag for the working week. It was a bank holiday Monday but she had to go into work. Robbie didn't envy her. He was secretly pleased he would have a bit more of a quiet day ahead of him. _I really am getting old _he lamented to himself when he realised what he was thinking. Maybe it was time to seriously think about his work. So many times he'd said he would _call it a day_, only to feel the pull of the thrill of an investigation. That and being able to work alongside Laura.

Despite looking forward to a quiet day however, Robbie had a couple of things he did need to do, and one of them was to call Tommy's sister. Like Laura had said, it wasn't going to be an easy thing to do. But he thought of what she'd also said about him being the right person to do it. As he watched Laura collect her things for work he thought again about the gypsy's prophecy. _Thou art wi' the woman you love _and never had Robbie realised how much Laura meant to him, or how much she believed in and loved him. Again, her words from their walk on the beach echoed in his head _Maybe you should try it sometime _And Robbie frowned as he thought about what she'd said. Did she mean it? What if he'd got the wrong message or she'd been joking. Was it worth the risk?

"Right, that's me ready. I'm going to go for a bath then head to bed" Laura announced with a smile to Robbie, neatly stacking her bags by the door to the hallway.

"Alright, Love, see you up there in a bit. I'll turn off down here" Robbie said as she disappeared up the stairs.

He sat for a while longer, deep in thought. Then he got his phone out of his pocket and went to the web browser. He wasn't very good with the internet on his mobile, he preferred to use Laura's ipad, but he couldn't risk her seeing the search he was performing and he didn't know how to delete it from the history, so, with a frown and some swearing he tapped out his search on his phone and after 10 minutes he had found what he was looking for. He was still perturbed, despite finding what he needed. He put the phone down and sat a while longer, just thinking with a slight frown on his face. Then as the darkness outside thickened into late evening he got up, turned the lights out and followed Laura up to bed.

Not long later, in bed, Robbie and Laura lay in the darkness for a while, Robbie spooning Laura in their usual bedtime routine. They chatted quietly about Jack's visit and discussed his interest in the lab and Laura's work.

"Y'know" said Robbie after a while "Jack is very much like Val, well; that is, he's a lot like Lyn and she's a lot like Val in many ways; but Jack's also a lot like you." He squeezed her gently, hugging her closer.

Laura smiled, she was touched by Robbie's words "Are you going to give me a lecture about nature and nurture" She said, trying to staunch a rising emotion with a playful retort.

Robbie laughed softly "No" He said quietly into her ear "But I can give you one about love"

Laura turned in Robbie's arms to face him. "Robbie. . ." she said, and he could hear the emotion in her voice at what he had just said and in the darkness of the room she kissed him.

"I know being with me has thrown you into a bit of a readymade family, one you probably didn't really aspire to and I know it can be difficult sometimes, y'know, fitting in. . ." Robbie continued, pulling her closer. Laura knew Robbie was, whether he knew it or not, referring to how he felt about family dynamics, especially her family. Her brothers and extended family were larger than life and sometimes she worried it was all a bit too much for Robbie, that he felt he didn't really fit in, despite her best efforts.

"I think what I'm trying to say, is that I'm glad you're in Jack's life, and mine, for that matter" Robbie continued

"I'm glad I'm here too" She said and despite the darkness Robbie saw in her eyes a silver lacing of tears as she smiled at him in the dim light of the room. She was moved by what Robbie had said; she'd been placed into Robbie's and his family's life by chance events, by cruel twists of fate and it filled her with gratitude when he exposed his heart to her like this. Robbie kissed her back and in each other's arms, they both drifted off to sleep.


	26. Chapter 26 Treasure

Two months later, Laura returned home from work in the autumn darkness of early evening. She was in a good mood. The hand-over of the lab was going well and she'd managed to let go of several large parts of her purview to new blood in the department. It had been tough but she knew she'd made good and right decisions in her delegations. Things were coming together, she was due to retire fully in December and although still a little reticent about making such a big life change, she knew she was ready.

It was late October, the air was crisp with cold and the scent of bonfire smoke. As she parked her car outside the house, she saw the curtains drawn against the darkness, with ribbons of warm yellow light either side. She looked up at the rooftop and saw the chimney smoking. She smiled. Robbie had lit the stove and she could be pretty certain that he'd got the casserole she'd made the day before in the oven, as per her instructions, ready for their dinner.

She was right. As she closed the door behind her, shutting out the cold night air, Robbie appeared from the living room, a tea-towel over his shoulder, ready to help take her coat off. She could tell he was about to dish up from the delicious scent of food in the air. If there was one thing Robbie was good at, it was following her instructions for putting the dinner on.

"Hi" She said, treating him to one of her smiles that he knew was reserved for him at the end of a busy day.

"Hello" He smiled back and kissed her before taking her coat and scarf. It was a cold evening and she was glad of the warmth of the fire that was already permeating the house with a faint and sweet scent of woodsmoke.

"Good day?" He asked hanging up her coat

"Yes, very much so" She replied. "I'll tell you all about it over dinner" She said, her eyes going to the small stack of post on the sideboard.

"Anything of note or just bills?" She asked as she shunted her bags to the bottom of the stairs.

"Yeah, there is, actually; I'll show you later" he said with a smile and a wink.

"Interesting" She said, her eyes regarding him with curiosity and a smile on her face. "Let me go and get changed and I'll be down in a few ticks" She said.

Robbie nodded and as she disappeared up the stairs he went into the kitchen and finished setting the table before he dished up the dinner.

Later on, with dinner finished, the pair of them relaxed on the sofa in front of the fire. The log in the stove shifted lazily as it burned through itself and a bunch of sparks flitted against the glass of the stove door like a tiny swarm of bees. Laura sighed deeply with contentment. Nights like these had become a precious part of their life together and more and more she knew it was the small moments, often seemingly insignificant that gave her the most pleasure.

Robbie watched the flames in the stove for a while, before his hand went to the side table next to the sofa.

"Here" he said, picking up something that was hidden underneath the day's paper. He handed Laura a folded piece of paper that Laura could see had something tucked inside.

Taking it, she opened it and inside found a photo and realised that the piece of paper was in fact a letter, addressed to Robbie. Laura frowned in curiosity as she looked at the photo. It was of two women, both smiling. As Laura studied the picture, she recognised one of the women in it. It took a little while for her to be sure it was who she thought it was. The woman looked a lot different to when she had last seen her photo.

"It's Rose" She exclaimed to Robbie. Laura looked again at the new photo of Rose and the other woman. Rose looked almost like a different person. She looked clean, healthy and happy.

"Aye, and that's Tommy's sister" She sent a letter to thank us, for putting her in touch with Rose"

Laura read the letter, discovering that, through Robbie's gentle suggestions, that Rose might possibly be related to Tommy's sister and that, through a counsellor first, the two women had undergone tentative meetings and then DNA testing to confirm the fact that they were infact related.

"Rose had moved up to Newcastle, she's on the road to a better life" Robbie said with a smile

"All thanks to you" Laura said, placing her hand on his chest and smiling at him.

"Well, you too, you're the one that saw the resemblance"

"But you're the one who put the wheels in motion, Robbie"

"Well, we'll call it a team effort then eh?"

"I think that's fair" Laura said with a smile, rubbing her hand over Robbie's chest with affection.

Robbie smiled back "Something else arrived in the post today too" He said and from the side of the sofa he retrieved a small padded envelope. He handed it to Laura. She took it from him, looking at the address on the front

"It's got your name on, Robbie"

"It has. But it's actually for you" He said, with a smile. "Go on, have a look inside"

Before following his instruction, Laura looked again at the front of the envelope, she saw it was postmarked _North Yorkshire Coast_. And had arrived by special delivery. She frowned at Robbie, then smiling, with one eyebrow raised, she dug her hand into the envelope.

Robbie smiled back at her as he watched as she pulled out a small cube shaped box from inside the packet. Laura knew straight away that it was a ring box. She looked tentatively at Robbie, a slight smile on her face.

"Open it" He said softly

Laura lifted the hinged lid on the box and looked inside.

She thought she knew what was going to be inside the box, or at least she thought what was inside would be something close to what she thought would be in the box.

She was wrong.

"Oh. Robbie" She said, her mouth falling open in surprise. She looked at Robbie, lost for words. He smiled at her surprise, feeling a rush of tenderness towards her as she looked at him, stunned. Then he chuckled softly. It took a lot to render Laura Hobson speechless and he loved that he had, for once, managed it.

Inside the box was a ring. Laura had expected to find a ring in the box. After seeing the post mark and then retrieving a small box from the envelope Laura had expected something that might replace the ring that was lost to the sea while they had been in Whitby. But inside was something that took her by complete surprise.

"Robbie, are these the. . .they can't be" She started to ask, taking the ring out of the velvet slot inside the little box. She held the ring in her fingers. It was gold, not too large, but big enough to be noticeably understated, exactly how she liked her rings, and mounted onto the band were three asymmetrical settings, each containing something different. One was pure black, the other was a pale honey colour and the third was a clear, bright stone.

"Robbie. Are these . . . on the beach? the amber and jet pieces I found. I don't understand?" Her face at once confused but with a sense of underlying wonder.

"They are" He said, smiling at the fact that she knew straight away what the stones were. "Remember when we sat by the boat?"

Laura did remember, so clearly, the heart to heart they'd had on the beach that day, the emotions she'd felt after they'd talked. She nodded.

"Well, you got up to go down to the sea and I saw where you'd been sitting there was a tissue. I thought it was rubbish so I picked it up, I didn't want to leave litter on the beach. Anyway, when we got back to the cottage, later on, I realised it was the amber and the jet you'd found. You didn't know you'd lost them for a while, and by then I'd already had the idea, so I kept quiet when you realised they were gone. I'm sorry"

Laura laughed, shaking her head at his apology, and it was mixed with a slight sob of emotion, she felt overwhelmed by what he'd done, even from just knowing that he'd found the lost gemstones by the boat, to then him having the idea.

"I got in touch with that little jet workshop in Whitby" Robbie continued "The jeweller there said if I sent the amber and jet on he could see what he could do with them and luckily he was able to use them in the ring."

"Robbie. . ." Laura said, not quiet knowing what to say. She was overtaken by the ring, moreso that Robbie had gone to such lengths to use the little gemstones she'd found on the tideline.

"I thought of getting you another ring, like the one that got lost" Robbie said

Laura cut in quickly, despite her eyes shining with emotion "God, I'm glad you didn't. I've had enough reminders of death for now, at least when it comes to you." And she laughed softly, looking at him for a moment before returning her attention to the ring.

"Robbie. . . it's beautiful" She said, her voice quiet as she continued to gaze at the ring. It _was _beautiful, the little pieces of gemstones shone out from the gold. The jet was pure black and polished like a mirror and the amber was like a tiny drop of honey, catching and warming the light in a pleasing contrast to the solid blackness of the jet. There was also another stone, set alongside the amber and the jet. Laura studied it. It was a clear stone, a different shape to but the same size as the others, clear and with big facets cut into it. It caught the light in a spectacular, almost dazzling way and seemed to compliment and enhance the jet and the amber.

"What's this other stone, Robbie?" Laura asked, her eyes bright with the question.

Robbie looked at her, a strange bashful but hopeful smile on his face

He took a deep breath.

"It's a diamond. A rough one. I couldn't quite reach to a high end one, but it's got good clarity, apparently" And Robbie looked at the diamond on the golden band. It flashed the light like a star as Laura held it between her fingers and thumb.

"It's, um, well. . . it's a traditional stone for the kind of ring that it is. . ." he continued, tentatively watching her reaction at his words, scratching the back of his head, something Laura knew he did when he was nervous or uncomfortable.

Laura looked at Robbie, and he noted again she was lost for words, her eyes were bright with emotion, her mouth open slightly, at what he'd said, and she wore a look of almost apprehension. She held his gaze and he realised she was waiting for him to speak again.

He took another deep breath before continuing.

"Listen, I know you're not and never have been the marrying type. And I don't mind, really I don't, I respect how you feel about it all. But I want you to know that, well. . .that I love you and I'm here for you, always and until the end. I don't want it any other way, and I just want you to know that, regardless of what we do or don't do. . .infact it doesn't make a difference, well. . .I mean . . . of course it does. . . oh hell. . ."

Robbie began to flounder. He looked at Laura, she still looked shocked. He suddenly worried he'd made a grave mistake. He wondered if he should have just given her the ring as a gift, a memory of the day on the beach. _Damn_ he thought _I can't even find the words to ask her properly, even after going to all this effort why is this so bloody hard?_

"The answer is yes, Robbie" Laura said, quietly but clearly

He looked at her, his mouth dropped open, and it was his turn to be rendered speechless, and for a second he wasn't sure if he had heard her properly.

"I'll marry you" She said, realising he needed the clarification of an answer to a question he'd asked, in not so many words. She beamed a huge smile at him, laughing softly at his surprise and at her own surprise at the events.

Robbie found himself laughing back, it was a laugh of relief mixed with happiness and love.

"You will? You mean that?"

"Yes you fool, I mean it" she said, chuckling and her eyes filling with tears of emotion. Robbie chuckled again, feeling the relief and elation flood through him.

"Here. . ." Robbie said and taking the ring from Laura's grasp he took her left hand and put the ring on her ring finger. With his hand in hers, they both looked down at the ring, the diamond flashing between the warmth of the amber and the pure black jet.

"Robbie. . . it fits perfectly" Laura exclaimed, and with her knuckle, dabbed at her eyes which had filled a little more with moisture at the proceedings. She laughed softly again, aware that she was brimming with emotion. Robbie laughed back too, pulling her close. He felt as she did; giddy and excited with what they were doing. He looked down again at the ring on her finger, the amber, jet and diamond clustered together on the band of gold suddenly looked more magnificent than he could have ever imagined when he'd had the idea for the ring. He suspected it was more to do with Laura's response to his clumsy proposal. His thumb tenderly stoked Laura's fingers and he marvelled that the ring was indeed a good fit.

"Yeah, I had to be a bit of a sneak about that" He said "the jeweller sent me a little ring sizer thing, I had to do it when you were asleep. Bloody hell, I don't know how I would have explained that if you'd woken up" and they both laughed again, their heads close, kissing each other, several times, between smiles and more laughter.

"I think this calls for a glass of bubbly, don't you?" Robbie said with a wink

"What?"

"There's a bottle in the freezer, it's been in there about 40 minutes, should be just right by now"

Laura frowned at Robbie, it was one of her looks she often gave him, a frown mixed with incredulity along with a generous amount of affection.

"Oh, I see" She said "That's a bit presumptuous is it not? How did you know I was going to say yes?" She was now giving him a full-on Hobson smirk.

Robbie smiled. "I didn't" and he gazed at her with a bashful look "I hoped you would say yes, but if you'd said no, then I'd prepared myself for that too. Either way, you make me the happiest man on earth"

"Robbie. . ." Laura was on the verge of emotion again. She nodded slightly, smiling, her eyes twinkling. "You _must_ have known I'd say yes. I gave you enough hints" she added

"Yeah, well, a lass is entitled to change her mind, especially such a canny one like you" and giving her another kiss Robbie got up from the sofa and went into the kitchen, leaving Laura with a smile on her face that was still there when he returned a few minutes later with the champagne.

"Oh, there's something else" He said, handing her a flute of ice-cold champagne. "I've booked us a week at the cottage, in the new year, for when you've retired" Robbie said, smiling. "I thought we could go and see the puffins" he continued, with a sweet look on his face. Laura looked touched at his proposal but then he saw a frown flit across her face.

"Won't you be at work though, Robbie?" She said.

"No. I won't. I've been thinking, long and hard. When you finish, I finish. Enough is enough. I'm done with working, especially if you're not going to be there"

"That makes me very happy, Robbie" Laura said

Robbie simply nodded, smiling at her as she tilted her head up to his and they kissed. When they pulled away, she put her hand on his chest. "I know we don't have a hot tub for afterwards, but let's take this champagne upstairs" and, taking his hand, and kissing it she led them both upstairs. . .

**~THE END~**

* * *

**AN: Phew. Well, that's it for this story, folks. I hope you enjoyed it. I have to admit it wasn't the exact ending I thought I would write – I never really factored in a proposal, but it did just sort of evolve, and I hope I did it in a typically "Robson" way. I was going to just have the amber and jet ring as a gift from Robbie but then I thought a rough diamond would be a nice addition - and then all of a sudden it became an engagement ring - I must be getting soft in my middle age. . .**

**I will really miss writing this story but hopefully I'll be writing more new stories if I can. Until then, good wishes, good health and love to you all and THANK YOU for your input, it is, as always, much appreciated.**

**ML x**


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